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Dynamics of biological molecules irradiated by short x-ray pulses
Stefan P Hau-Riege1, Richard A London, Abraham Szoke
1Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California 94551, USA.
Abstract:
Very short and intense x-ray pulses can be used for diffraction imaging of single biological molecules. Inevitably, x-ray absorption initiates damage that degrades the molecule's image. This paper presents a continuum model of the physics that leads to damage when a small particle absorbs a large x-ray dose. The main processes are found to be ionization and Coulomb-force driven atomic motion. Trapping of electrons, Debye shielding, and nonuniform collisional ionization all have a significant effect on the overall damage kinetics.
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