Australian Institute of Physics |
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South Australian Branch |
Australian Institute of Physics |
|
South Australian Branch |
AIP/AIB Joint Members' meeting
Joint members' meeting
with the Australian Institute of Biology
Tuesday, September 3rd, 2002, at 7:30pm
Kerr Grant Lecture Theatre , Physics, Building, University of AdelaideInterested scientists, researchers and students are welcome to attend this meeting
Refreshments from 7.00 pm
Synchrotrons
by Assoc. Prof. Andrea Gerson
- Synchrotrons
- what are they and what makes them special?
- examples of biological applications
- the Australian synchrotron project(A talk designed by a chemist to be of particular interest to physicists, biologists and other scientists)
Assoc. Prof. Andrea Gerson
Sector Coordinator: Solid Surfaces, Structure and Reactivity.
Ian Wark Research Institute, University of South Australia. Mawson Lakes, SA 5095
E-mail: Andrea.Gerson@unisa.edu.au
Phone: 08-8302-3044Australia's first ever synchrotron facility is finally to be built in Melbourne offering a unique research tool for scientists of many disciplines. This talk will present the characteristics of synchrotrons and why they are interesting to physicists and biologists. The presentation will be divided into 3 sections: A brief examination of synchrotron radiation will be given including the generic parts of a synchrotron, some statistics describing electron energies and speeds, the uses of insertion devices and in particular the characteristics of synchrotron radiation which makes it distinct from other X-ray sources. The difference between 1st, 2nd and 3rd generation synchrotron sources will also be described. A number of relevant techniques with accompanying applications of interest to biologists will be described including:
- Macromolecular crystallography (including MAD) applied to protein and kinase,
- X-ray confocal microscopy for imaging of neurons and melanoma cells,
- X-ray absorption spectroscopy applied to enzyme structures and
- Circular dichroism applied to protein folding.
The timing and plans for the Australian synchrotron to be located in Melbourne will be discussed as will the initial set of proposed beamlines.