MX Core

NE-CAT运营着两条成熟的、最先进的光束线，这些光束线针对大分子晶体学进行了优化 APS。大分子结晶学(MX)资源运营核心的目标是为用户提供 使用这些设施，维护这些设施，并进行改进，使NE-CAT保持状态- 最先进的。提供访问权限的最重要组成部分是用户支持和培训。用户支持 需要大约四个FTE，由八名工作人员科学家的贡献组成。大约有两个FTE致力于 用户培训和外展，以及大约两个全时工作人员，以传送线硬件和软件维护 发展。MX Core为现场和远程用户提供全天候访问，无论是现场还是电话。它 维护硬件和软件以实现准确、高速的数据收集，包括晶体筛选、 SAD/MAD定相、分子置换定相、高分辨率数据采集以及用于 从具有挑战性的(“病态”)晶体中获取数据。Ne-CAT提供超稳定的小X射线束 各种微束应用。特殊扫描技术允许用户改善晶体损伤， 在不透明介质中定位晶体，并评估较大、不均匀的局部区域的质量 水晶。MX Core还提供对NE-CAT的自动数据收集和分析的完全访问权限 软件。MX Core将通过以下方式使现有的光束线硬件和软件保持最佳性能 明确的长期计划，以支持老化的MD2微衍射仪和样品自动安装机 提供运动控制系统、临界真空泵和超高真空泵的日常维护，以及 单色仪低温泵。MX Core还将维护计算机集群、光束线和数据分析 计算机、磁盘存储系统和网络基础设施。某些改进将是必不可少的 保持NE-CAT设备的最先进水平。它们分为三个领域：(1)光束线光学和 仪器，(2)计算基础设施，和(3)随机扩增软件。光束线光学系统的计划包括 对两条光束线的水平聚焦镜系统进行了升级，安装了联动通道切割器 24-ID-C单色仪，MD2可视化系统的改进，以及 24-ID-E的二次聚焦光学系统这些修改和改进与APS兼容 升级，预计2023年。计算升级包括向计算集群添加更快的节点， 用于数据收集和网络基础架构升级的额外磁盘存储。最后，我们将实施 新的外部开发的数据处理和分析例程，以保持最先进的技术，以及 我们将开发自动化水晶筛选和评分系统。

NE-CAT operates two mature, state-of-the-art beamlines optimized for macromolecular crystallography at the APS. The goal of the Macromolecular Crystallography (MX) Resource Operations Core is to provide user access to these facilities, to maintain the facilities, and to make improvements so that NE-CAT remains state- of-the-art. The most important component for providing access is user support and training. User support requires about four FTE's, made up by contributions from eight staff scientists. About two FTEs are devoted to user training and outreach, and about two FTEs, to beamline hardware and software maintenance and development. The MX Core provides access 24/7, either on-site or on-call, for both on-site and remote users. It maintains hardware and software for accurate, high speed data collection, including crystal screening, SAD/MAD phasing, molecular replacement phasing, high resolution data acquisition, and methods for obtaining data from challenging ("pathological") crystals. NE-CAT provides ultrastable, small X-ray beams for a variety of microbeam applications. Special scanning techniques allow the user to ameliorate crystal damage, locate crystals in opaque media, and assess the quality of localized regions within larger, inhomogeneous crystals. The MX Core also provides full access to RAPD, NE-CAT's automated data collection and analysis software. The MX Core will maintain existing beamline hardware and software at peak performance, through a well defined, long-term plan for supporting the aging MD2 microdiffractometers and sample automounters and for providing routine maintenance of motion control systems, critical vacuum and ultrahigh vacuum pumps, and monochromator cryopumps. The MX Core will also maintain computer clusters, beamline and data analysis computers, disk storage systems, and network infrastructure. Certain improvements will be essential for keeping NE-CAT facilities at state-of-the-art. These fall into three areas: (1) beamline optics and instrumentation, (2) computing infrastructure, and (3) RAPD software. Plans for beamline optics include upgrades of the horizontal focusing mirror systems on both beamlines, installation of a ganged channel-cut monochromator on 24-ID-C, improvements in the MD2 visualization system, and improvements of the secondary focusing optics on 24-ID-E. These modifications and improvements are compatible with the APS upgrade, anticipated in 2023. Computing upgrades include addition of faster nodes to the compute clusters, additional disk storage for data collection, and upgrades of network infrastructure. Finally, we will implement new externally developed data processing and analysis routines, to maintain state-of-the-art techniques, and we will develop automated crystal screening and scoring systems.