A coordinate X-ray diffractometer based on a two-dimensional proportional chamber and a two-circle goniometer

A coordinate X-ray diffractometer based on a flat two-coordinate multiwire proportional chamber 350 × 350 × 10 mm and information readout from cathode printed-circuit delay lines is described. The diffractometer is used to study macromolecular single crystals. The chamber is placed on a two-circle goniometer at distances of 300, 500 and 750 mm from the crystal. The diffractometer operates on-line with an SM-2 computer. A diffraction picture is collected in a 64 K 16-bit word computer core memory with the maximum count rate of 250000 events s⁻¹. The detection quantum efficiency of Cu Kα radiation is about 70%. The number of spatial resolution elements of a diffraction picture is ~ 50000, the resolution time ~ 0.5 μs. The general case of inclined geometry is used. The diffraction picture is collected during quasi-continuous scanning. Control of the diffractometer, data collection and pre-computing X,Z are performed at the same time. The diffractometer makes it possible to study single crystals having unit cells up to 250 Å at a resolution of 3.5 Å and to 84 Å at a resolution of 1.5 Å.