Biological Structure 515
Biological X-ray Structure Analysis
University of Washington

Course and Website Description

Biological Structure 515 is a beginning crystallography course offered at the University of Washington since the 1960s. The professors in charge of the course have been Lyle Jensen and Ron Stenkamp . The course covers the basics of X-ray crystallography, including symmetry, lattices, space groups, diffraction, structure solution methods, structure refinement, and structure analysis. The material presented here is a copy of the lecture notes developed over the past few years for the symmetry sections of the course. The material will be updated and refined as time becomes available.

Topics - Introduction

• Class Mechanics

• Basic Questions

• Overview

• Electron Densities and Structure Factors

• The Unit Cell

• Back to the Electron Density Equation

• What Can You Calculate?

Topics - Symmetry

• Crystals and Symmetry

• Lattices

• Unit Cells

• Point Groups

• Symmetry and Lattices

• Primitive Bravais Lattices

• Non-Primitive Bravais Lattices

• Possible Point of Confusion - First and Second Settings

• Possible Point of Confusion - Centered Cells and Centers of Inversion

• Certain Types of Non-Primitive Lattices Aren't Considered

• Symmetry Operations in Three-Dimensional Space

• Screw Axes

• Glide Planes

• Space Groups and the International Tables

• Example -

• Meaning of Header Lines in Space Group Entry

• Unit Cell Schematic

• How are Symmetry Elements Denoted?

• What About Equivalent Positions?

• Settings and Systematic Absences

• How Do the New Tables Show Things?

• Building from First Principles

• Example - C2/c

• Example - P

• Intersecting Two-Fold Screw Axes

Topics to be Added

• Diffraction Theory

• Data Collection and Processing

• Structure Solution

• Structure Refinement and Analysis

  copyright © Ron Stenkamp stenkamp@u.washington.edu Most recent update 1/2/16

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