ACCURATE EXPERIMENTAL ELECTRONIC-PROPERTIES OF DL-PROLINE MONOHYDRATEOBTAINED WITHIN 1 DAY

A 1-day x-ray diffraction experiment on DL-proline monohydrate was per formed at 100 kelvin with synchrotron radiation and a charge-coupled d evice area detection technique. The accuracy of the charge density dis tribution and of the related electronic properties extracted from thes e data is comparable or even superior to the accuracy obtained from a 6-week experiment on DL-aspartic acid with conventional x-ray diffract ion methods. A data acquisition time of 1 day is comparable to the tim e needed for an ab initio calculation on the isolated molecules, This technique renders larger molecular systems of biological importance ac cessible to charge density experiments.