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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Feb 15, 2026

Atomic Scale Structural Studies of Macromolecular Assemblies by Solid-state Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Atomic Scale Structural Studies of Macromolecular Assemblies by Solid-state Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Published on: September 17, 2017

Posner molecules: from atomic structure to nuclear spins.

Michael W Swift¹, Chris G Van de Walle, Matthew P A Fisher

¹Department of Physics, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106-9530, USA.

Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics : PCCP

|January 31, 2018

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Posner molecules, calcium phosphate clusters, show potential for quantum computing and medical imaging due to their unique spin properties. These findings highlight new applications for these biomolecular structures.

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Area of Science:

Biophysics
Computational Chemistry
Materials Science

Background:

Posner molecules (Ca9(PO4)6) are calcium phosphate clusters found in hydroxyapatite and observed in vitro.
Their formation and aggregation are crucial for bone growth and may influence mitochondrial calcium and phosphate levels.

Purpose of the Study:

To computationally investigate the structure, vibrational spectra, and bonding of Posner molecules.
To explore the potential of Posner molecules for quantum computation and medical imaging applications.

Main Methods:

Utilized first-principles computational methodology.
Studied molecular structure, vibrational spectra, cation interactions, and pairwise bonding.

Main Results:

Determined the structure and vibrational properties of Posner molecules.
Demonstrated that Posner molecules offer an environment for long spin coherence times for 31P nuclear spins.
Identified potential for liquid-state NMR quantum computation and in vivo medical imaging.

Conclusions:

Posner molecules possess unique properties suitable for advanced technological applications.
The long spin coherence times in Posner molecules open avenues for quantum information processing and enhanced medical imaging techniques.