Thorsten Maly, Vice president of Magnetic Resonance at Bridge12, said: “As a startup, the platform we used to design the EPR spectrometer uses the latest technology. This allows us to develop the next generation of products that are smaller and more compact than existing products on the market. Many of our customers are university researchers, and they often use this technology in a collaborative way. However, our new product is not only affordable but also technologically advanced, opening the door to more researchers in this field. In addition to this, we have also lowered the threshold for the use of the device so that any scientist can use it for research, which also makes the EPR spectrometer more widely used. Our control software is intuitive and comes with a lot of automation that makes it easy to set up and instantly detect anything that goes wrong. In short, you don’t have to be an expert in the EPR spectrometer to get results easily.”

T8151B How EPR works

The EPR spectrometer can be used in structural biology. It is able to determine the folded shape of the (membrane) protein by the distance between the free radicals. This will provide insight into how proteins interact with other molecules or proteins. The principle is done by attaching two spin tags (labels) to the protein and measuring the distance between them using pulsed dipole spectroscopy (a form of pulsed EPR spectrometer). Spin tags are specially designed non-reactive free radical molecules. The EPR spectrometer excites free radicals and detects their reactions through a series of microwave pulses. The dipole coupling between the spins directly creates a distance between the two marks. Spin tag pairs can be placed at different locations in a protein to produce a set of distances, and can also be used to determine a three-dimensional model of protein folding.

T8151B

Low noise and modular components

“With a precise pulse train, EPR spectrometers can measure distances in the 1-100 angstroms range, which is why it is important to use Spectrum instruments because they are extremely low noise.” “In addition, our T8151B spectrometers are modular in design, giving customers the freedom to choose the product performance they want. We chose the broadest range of AWGs and digitizers from Spectrum’s portfolio, without the need to buy a specific card. What we think is remarkable about Spectrum products is that they can be integrated into Netboxes and then connected to computers over Ethernet. This way, we can do it all with a small computer, rather than a bulky rack solution big enough to hold all the card equipment. This also makes it easier to repair equipment and replace parts later.”

Figure 2: Operating in the 35GHz Q band range

Over the past few decades, developments in radar technology and the mobile communications industry have driven advances in EPR spectrometers. These technologies create devices that can be used to build EPR hardware. The device uses microwave technology, and the higher the frequency, the higher the resolution. To date, the EPR spectrometer has operated at a frequency of 10GHzz (X-band). However, with the development of 5G technology, there are commercial devices capable of operating in 35GHz (Q band), which is more suitable for the new products launched this time.