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Abstract: Since March 2013, the Diamond storage ring has been operated with a target vertical emittance of 8 pm.rad. This condition is achieved by first applying a LOCO* optics correction with IDs set to their typical gaps, then offsetting the skew quadrupole magnets in order to increase the vertical emittance again to the desired value. Whilst a feedback application** is able to stabilise the vertical emittance during ID gap and phase changes in the short to medium term, regular applications of LOCO are still required to maintain good coupling control in the longer term. In this paper we describe measures taken to speed up the optics correction procedure, including a fast orbit response matrix measurement, a reduction of the number of magnets used to measure the data, and a distribution of the LOCO calculations to run in parallel.

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Abstract: The Accelerator Science Laboratory (ASL) is under development at the John Adams Institute in Oxford with the aim of fostering advanced accelerator concepts and applications. The option to install a short pulse THz FEL based on a conventional RF accelerator driven by a RF photocathode gun is being investigated. This report presents the concept of the facility, the accelerator physics and FEL studies and engineering integration in the University physics department.

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Abstract: The field of Membrane Protein Structural Biology has grown significantly since its first landmark in 1985 with the first three-dimensional atomic resolution structure of a membrane protein. Nearly twenty-six years later, the crystal structure of the beta2 adrenergic receptor in complex with G protein has contributed to another landmark in the field leading to the 2012 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. At present, more than 350 unique membrane protein structures solved by X-ray crystallography (http://blanco.biomol.uci.edu/mpstruc/exp/list, Stephen White Lab at UC Irvine) are available in the Protein Data Bank. The advent of genomics and proteomics initiatives combined with high-throughput technologies, such as automation, miniaturization, integration and third-generation synchrotrons, has enhanced membrane protein structure determination rate. X-ray crystallography is still the only method capable of providing detailed information on how ligands, cofactors, and ions interact with proteins, and is therefore a powerful tool in biochemistry and drug discovery. Yet the growth of membrane protein crystals suitable for X-ray diffraction studies amazingly remains a fine art and a major bottleneck in the field. It is often necessary to apply as many innovative approaches as possible. In this review we draw attention to the latest methods and strategies for the production of suitable crystals for membrane protein structure determination. In addition we also highlight the impact that third-generation synchrotron radiation has made in the field, summarizing the latest strategies used at synchrotron beamlines for screening and data collection from such demanding crystals. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Structural and biophysical characterisation of membrane protein-ligand binding.

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Abstract: Theoretical and experimental studies have been carried out at the Diamond Light Source to assess the possibility of reducing the emittance of the existing storage ring by means of a change to the optics. The optics solutions obtained so far using a Multi Objective Genetic Algorithm (MOGA) increase the dispersion and the horizontal beta function in the straight section. While the emittance can be reduced to 2.1 nm this optics is limited by the operation of high field superconducting wiggler devices. In this report we present details of the new optics and present results of practical tests. We also compare the theoretical emittance growth due to a wiggler in a dispersive region with test results.

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Abstract: Many synchrotron radiation facilities are studying lattice upgrades in order to lower the natural emittance and hence increase the radiation brightness. At Diamond we are pursuing a novel alternative, not targeting the minimum possible emittance but instead introducing additional insertion device (ID) straights and hence increasing the capacity of the facility, while still possibly achieving a more limited reduction in emittance. The new scheme involves converting some of the DBA lattice cells into a double-DBA or DDBA, with a new ID straight between the two achromats. This then allows existing or future bending magnet ports (which in Diamond are taken from near the entrance to the second dipole of the DBA lattice) to be served by a much more powerful insertion device. We present here the design concept and preliminary lattice design, and discuss the challenging magnet, vacuum and engineering issues.