CRIF: Development of a Sample Shuttler for NMR Relaxation Studies Using Commercial Spectrometers

Brandeis University, Waltham MA

Investigators

Abstract

With support from the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) Program, Prof. Alfred Redfield of Brandeis University will develop a sample shuttler for nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) relaxation studies using commercial spectrometers. The sample shuttle probe will provide an approach to obtaining the magnetic field dependence of spin-lattice relaxation constants. Thus, this new tool will provide a convenient way to separate dipolar contributions from chemical shift anisotropic contributions without the necessity of multiple NMR instruments. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is the most powerful tool available to chemists for the elucidation of the structure of molecules. It is used to identify unknown substances, to characterize specific arrangements of atoms within molecules, and to study the dynamics of interactions between molecules in solution. The completed shuttler should be broadly applicable and could be readily built in a university machine shop. Thus NMR relaxation measurements, which are key to understanding complex biologically relevant molecules, will become much more common-place.