Apparatus and method for determining molecular structure

1. A method for determining molecular structure, comprising:

producing substantially solvent-free sample ions from a sample;

cooling the sample ions;

introducing the cooled sample ions into a diffraction zone;

orienting a first cooled sample ion to produce a first oriented sample ion in the diffraction zone;

collecting a diffraction image from the first oriented sample ion;

orienting a second cooled sample ion in the diffraction zone;

collecting a second image from the second cooled sample ion; and

determining molecular structure using collected sample ion images.

2. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising using at least a third cooled sample ion.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein cooling the sample ions comprises cooling with a cooled ion trap, a superfluid, or a combination thereof.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the sample comprises macromolecules, nano-crystals of macromolecules, fragments of macromolecules, clusters of macromolecules, complexes of macromolecules, nanostructures of organic compounds, nanostructures of inorganic compounds, or combinations thereof.

5. The method according to claim 4 , wherein the macromolecules are proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates or lipids.

6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein producing sample ions comprises using electrospray ionization, matrix assisted laser desorption ionization, a mass spectrometer, or a combination thereof.

7. The method according to claim 4 , further comprising purifying macromolecules according to mass prior to cooling, purifying macromolecules according to conformation prior to cooling, or purifying macromolecules according to mass and conformation prior to cooling.

8. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the sample ions are cooled to a temperature of greater than absolute zero to less than about 50 K.

9. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the diffraction image is produced by x-ray diffraction or an electron beam.

10. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the sample ions are oriented using a direct current electric field and a laser.

11. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising orienting plural sample ions within about 1° for a period of from 5 ns to 50 μs.

12. The method according to claim 10 , further comprising changing elliptical polarization of the laser to simultaneously rotate the sample ions to obtain diffraction from multiple orientations.

13. The method according to claim 5 , further comprising:

orienting packets of sample ions comprising from about 10 2 to about 10 4 macromolecules for a selected period of time; and

collecting diffraction images from these packets in a pulsed mode or continuous mode.

14. The method according to claim 4 , further comprising cooling the macromolecules or macromolecular ions in superfluidic helium and constraining the macromolecules or macromolecular ions embedded in the superfluidic helium in about a 0.1 mm 3 region in crossing paths of an alignment laser beam and an electron beam.

15. The method according to claim 10 , further comprising:

(i) using a rotating polarization prism to rotate sample ions stepwise around a primary axis of polarizability;

(ii) periodically changing elliptical polarization of an alignment laser, or a combination thereof;

(iii) minimizing radiation damage to sample ions by replacing sample ions every laser pulse and cooling the sample ions to a temperature greater than 0 K to about 50 K;

(iv) a combination thereof.

16. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising accumulating data from multiple packets of sample ions oriented substantially identically.

17. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising producing a diffraction image that is a simple sum of continuous images of electron scattering from each ion in the diffraction zone.

18. The method according to claim 15 , further comprising:

collecting diffraction data from a first packet of sample ions at a first orientation;

changing laser polarization to orient a second packet of sample ions by a predictable amount to a second orientation; and

collecting diffraction data from the second packet of sample ions.

19. An apparatus for determining molecular structure, comprising:

a source of sample ions;

an ion chiller;

an orientation laser for orienting cooled ions in a diffraction zone; and

an imaging system to produce diffraction images of oriented sample ions in the diffraction zone.

20. The apparatus according to claim 19 , wherein the imaging system comprises an x-ray diffraction system, an electron diffraction system, or both.

21. The apparatus according to claim 19 , wherein the ion chiller comprises a source of superfluidic helium droplets or a cooled ion trap.

22. The apparatus according to claim 19 , wherein the apparatus further comprises electrodes upstream of the orientation laser to produce a direct current field for preliminary orientation of ions, a mass analyzer, an orientation and diffraction chamber, an analytical section downstream of the diffraction zone, an electron gun, an ion trap, an alignment laser that generates polarized infrared light, or a combination thereof.

23. The apparatus according to claim 19 , wherein the source of sample ions comprises an electrospray ionization source, a mass spectrometer, a sample purifying section, or a combination thereof.

24. The apparatus according to claim 23 , wherein the apparatus comprises the sample purifying section, and the sample purifying section comprises a mass analyzer, an ion drift tube, deflector electrodes, an ion bender, an ion trap, a helium sample ion trap, or a combination thereof.

25. The apparatus according to claim 22 , where the orientation and diffraction chamber is coupled in series to a helium ion trap.

26. The apparatus according to claim 22 , wherein the analytical section includes an ion bender and mass detector, a helium droplet detector, a time-of-flight component upstream of a fast ion gauge, a multichannel plate detector, or a combination thereof.

27. The apparatus according to claim 19 , wherein the diffraction zone comprises a pulsed electron beam, a pulsed laser beam, and a pulsed ion beam; the orientation laser further comprises a polarizer and at least one phase retarder; or both.

28. The apparatus according to claim 21 , further comprising:

(i) a pulsed helium droplet valve having an opening time of about 10-20 microseconds, capable of withstanding pressures up to about 100 atmospheres, and operating at frequencies of several thousand Hertz, or a continuous cooled nozzle;

(ii) an analytical wheel comprising plural receptacles for housing at least one device selected from a Faraday cup to determine the number of electrons included in an electron beam, a phosphor screen to detect electrons to time an electron beam and its intersection with doped helium droplets and the orientation laser, a standard transmission electron microscopy (TEM) sample for calibration, or a time-of-flight mass spectrometer;

(iii) a cold head coupled to the helium droplet source to pre-cool high pressure helium gas in the droplet source to a desired temperature of from greater than 0 K to about 20 K;

(iv) a series of electrodes upstream of the diffraction zone to separate pure helium droplets, bare ions and helium droplets doped with sample ions before each proceeds into the diffraction zone;

(v) a cryogenic helium nozzle cooled to 0 to 20 K that allows adjusting temperature of the helium nozzle to determine helium droplet size distribution; or

(vi) a combination thereof.

29. The apparatus according to claim 19 , further comprising:

a cooled ion trap or a source of superfluidic helium droplets;

two or more electrodes to produce a direct current electric field for preliminary orientation of the sample ions upstream of the orientation laser;

an electron source for electron diffraction imaging; and

a recorder to record the images.

30. A device for determining size and overlap of plural beams, comprising:

a linear variable differential transformer (LVDT);

a motorized linear displacement actuator;

a shuttle comprising a cutting edge; and

an intensity detector for each of the plural beams.