University of Birmingham

Since 2004, the national biomolecular NMR facility at the Henry Wellcome Building for Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (HWB-NMR) offers academic and industrial users across the UK hands-on or collaborative access to a range of high-field solution-state NMR spectrometers (600 & 900 MHz, 1 GHz and 1.2 GHz expected 2025). The facility supports internationally competitive biomedical research in the areas of structural biology, metabolic profiling of human disease, and in drug discovery.  We offer open access to all of our spectrometers. The facility also offers training (including multi-day ‘NMR Bootcamps’), available to the wider NMR community, as well as other national user events of interest, including annual user meetings and master classes held at HWB-NMR.

Contacts:
Dr. Sara Whittaker

NMR Equipment

Ultra-High Field (>800 MHz)

The equipment to be procured comprises a superconducting magnet operating at 1.2 GHz magnetic field, a spectrometer console capable of transmitting and receiving radiofrequencies of > 1.2 GHz, one associated cryogenically-cooled probe for measurement of solution-state samples in 3 mm tubes and a solid-state 1.9 mm probe for material science.

The magnet will be equipped with a SampleJet automated sample changer, including variable temperature cooling/heating and capacity for 480 ‘short’ sample tubes, including 5 mm (600 μl), 3 mm (180 μl), 1.7 mm (30 μl), 1 mm (8 μl) diameter NMR tubes.

Bruker Avance NEO 1.0 GHz four channel narrow bore NMR spectrometer equipped with SampleJet automated sample changer, including variable temperature cooling/heating and capacity for 480 ‘short’ sample tubes, including 5 mm (600 μl), 3 mm (180 μl), 1.7 mm (30 μl), 1 mm (8 μl) diameter NMR tubes.

Solution state probes:

  • 5 mm 1H-optimised triple resonance (1H, 13C/15N, 2H TXI) probe, z-gradient
  • 5 mm 1H-optimised triple resonance (TCI) He-cooled cryoprobe with enhanced 13C, 15N, 1H, 2H sensitivity, z-gradient

Bruker Avance III HD 900 MHz four channel narrow bore NMR spectrometer.

Solution state probes:

  • 5 mm 1H-optimised triple resonance (TCI) He-cooled cryoprobe with enhanced 13C, 15N, 1H, 2H sensitivity, z-gradient
  • 5 mm 1H-optimised triple resonance (1H, 13C/15N, 2H TXI) probe, z-gradient

Solid state probes:

  • 0.7 mm C/N/H CP-MAS probe (up to 110 kHz spin rate)
  • 3.2 mm C/N/H CP-MAS probe

Very-High Field (700-800 MHz)

The Bruker Avance NEO 800 MHz will be decommissioned in Nov 2024

Additional capabilities

Bruker Avance IVDr 600 MHz two channel NMR spectrometer standardised for high-throughput pre-clinical screening and in vitro diagnostics research, equipped with SampleJet automated sample changer, including sample cooling to 6°C and capacity for 480 ‘short’ sample tubes, including 5 mm (600 μl), 3 mm (180 μl), 1.7 mm (30 μl), 1 mm (8 μl) diameter NMR tubes. Full measurement service provided by the Phenome Centre Birmingham, offering the current ‘gold’ standard in metabolomics NMR of clinical samples, with standardised platform and excellent stability and reproducibility.

Bruker Avance III 600 MHz narrow bore three channel NMR spectrometer equipped with 5 mm 13C/15N-optimised triple resonance (TXO) He-cooled cryoprobe with enhanced 13C, 15N, 1H, 2H sensitivity. Ideal for ‘proton-less’ NMR experiments of intrinsically disordered proteins, for example.

Bruker Avance III 600 MHz narrow bore three channel NMR spectrometer equipped with 1.7 mm  (TCI) He-cooled cryoprobe with enhanced 13C, 15N, 1H, 2H sensitivity. Ideal for mass-limited samples, including natural products.