# Femtosecond x-ray diffraction from an aerosolized beam of protein nanocrystals

## TL;DR

This paper demonstrates near-atomic-resolution x-ray diffraction from aerosolized protein nanocrystals using an x-ray free-electron laser, reducing background noise and enabling studies of small crystals with high-speed capabilities.

## Contribution

It introduces an aerosol injector method with helium carrier gas for high-resolution diffraction of protein nanocrystals, improving background reduction over traditional liquid nozzles.

## Key findings

- Achieved near-atomic-resolution Bragg diffraction from aerosolized crystals.
- Reduced x-ray scattering background by using helium instead of liquid.
- Suitable for high-repetition-rate x-ray free-electron lasers.

## Abstract

We demonstrate near-atomic-resolution Bragg diffraction from aerosolized single granulovirus crystals using an x-ray free-electron laser. The form of the aerosol injector is nearly identical to conventional liquid-microjet nozzles, but the x-ray-scattering background is reduced by several orders of magnitude by the use of helium carrier gas rather than liquid. This approach provides a route to study the weak diffuse or lattice-transform signal arising from small crystals. The high speed of the particles is particularly well suited to upcoming MHz-repetition-rate x-ray free-electron lasers.