Oxford Diffraction's 'Gemini R' wins R&D100 award as the most significant technology advance for 2005

Oxford Diffraction has recently added an R&D100 award to its trophy cabinet for its Gemini R dual wavelength X-ray system. Awarded by the US based R&D magazine the R&D100 awards are awarded by independent judges to the top 100 technologically significant products of the year.

The Gemini R incorporates Oxford Diffraction’s patented CCD and X-ray technology, utilising the 135 mm Ruby CCD detector, kappa 4-circle goniometer and co-mounted hi-flux molybdenum and copper Enhance X-ray sources.

The award winning Gemini R has been heralded by many as the greatest advance in X-ray diffraction equipment since the introduction of the CCD detector in the early 1990's. The defining feature of the Gemini R product is the presence of two co-mounted X-ray sources; one at molybdenum and the other at copper wavelength. Molybdenum and copper radiation have different applications in the fields of small molecule and protein crystallography and prior to the launch of Gemini R the user would have to embark on a lengthy >2-3 hr rebuild of their instrument to change from one wavelength to the other. With Gemini R the Enhance X-ray sources are pre-aligned and switching from one to the other can be achieved completely automatically in less than 3 min at the flick of a software switch.

Dr Leigh Rees, Marketing Manager for Oxford Diffraction said "We are very proud to have won our second R&D100 award in two years. The Gemini R has attracted a great deal of attention since its launch in August 2004 and it is very gratifying to see that we are driving X-ray innovation and producing products that meet the current and future needs of the scientific community."

The R&D 100 awards, from R&D magazine were first awarded 43 years ago and were designed to highlight the 100 most technologically significant new products of each year. Originally known as the I-R 100s, in keeping with the original name of the magazine, Industrial Research, entries for the award are judged by at least 60 outside experts drawn from unbiased professional consultants, university faculty, and industrial researchers with superior expertise and experience in the areas being judged. The winning of an R&D 100 Award provides a mark of excellence seen by industry, government, and academia as proof that the product is one of the most innovative ideas of the year. The products entered for the award must have been available for sale or licensing during the calendar year preceding the judging.

Over the years, the R&D 100 Awards have recognized winning products with such household names as Polacolor film (1963), the flashcube (1965), the automated teller machine (1973), the halogen lamp (1974), the fax machine (1975), the liquid crystal display (1980), the printer (1986), the Kodak Photo CD (1991), the Nicoderm antismoking patch (1992), Taxol anticancer drug (1993), lab on a chip (1996), and HDTV (1998).

For further information, please contact:
Dr. Leigh Rees
Oxford Diffraction Limited
68 Milton Park Abingdon
Oxfordshire OX14 4RX,
UK
Tel: +44 (0)1235 443630
Fax:+44 (0)1235 443631