Different structures scatter the X-rays into different characteristic patterns.Įven though scientists couldn’t directly observe the atoms within the crystal, they could work backward from X-ray diffraction patterns to reconstruct the three-dimensional structure that produced the scattering. However, if the structure has a repeating arrangement of atoms, they leave a pattern of sharp, clear spots. If they don’t, the X-rays are bent into overlapping patterns, leaving the results a fuzzy, indistinct blur. Because the X-rays must travel through many layers of atoms, it’s important that the atoms always occur in the same crystalline arrangement. When X-rays are aimed through a sample, they are bent or diffracted in different directions depending on the locations of the atoms in the sample, and the final direction of the X-rays can be recorded on film. The technique works on crystals, a kind of molecule with a regular, repeating structure. X-ray diffraction, developed in the first half of the 20th century, was one of the new technologies that made solving the structure of DNA possible. student in Wilkins’ lab, suggested looking at the DNA with a new observational technique called X-ray diffraction. It was so slimy and gooey that he later described it as “just like snot.” Nevertheless, because it contained long, intact DNA molecules - which were hard to come by at the time - this slippery sample would turn out to be critical in uncovering clues to DNA’s structure. Wilkins was lucky enough to get a sample - though it might not have seemed that impressive at the time. Early in his career there, he happened to attend a conference where a biochemist gave away samples of high-quality DNA. He turned to the fast-growing field of biophysics, taking up a position at the University of London. After his work with the Manhattan Project on atomic bombs was completed, he wanted to switch to a more peaceful line of work and was inspired to investigate the physical basis for life. Maurice Wilkins, the nuclear physicist, entered the race for DNA based on a stroke of luck. student in the lab at the University of London.
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