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Every process that sustains life is carried out by proteins, but understanding how these complex molecules do their jobs depends on learning the arrangement of their atoms – and how the structure changes – as they interact. No effective method for observing molecular movement with such detail and speed had been available, until now.
In a groundbreaking experiment with the world’s fastest camera, a team of physicists documented the fundamental processes of a chemical reaction unfolding in real time. They captured images of a tiny crystalized protein as it reacted to light in increments that occur in a few quadrillionths of a second.Image credit: SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory illustration
