X-ray dynamical diffraction in amino acid crystals: a step towards improving structural resolution of biological molecules via physical phase measurements

In this work, experimental and data analysis procedures were developed and applied for studying amino acid crystals by means of X-ray phase measurements. It clearly demonstrated the sensitivity of invariant triplet phases to electronic charge distribution in D-alanine crystal, providing useful information on intermolecular forces for molecular dynamics calculations. Feasibility of phase measurements to investigate radiation damage mechanisms is also discussed on experimental and theoretical grounds.