UW CHEMISTRY NMR

Dear User

The probe has been fitted with a totally new Automatic Tuning and Matching hardware assembly as part of its refurbishment.  This means that, when you run the ‘atma’ command and if the solvent that is used with your sample has not been already ‘registered’ in the probe’s database, it takes a while to search and find the correct combination of internal numbers to give you the familiar ‘V’ shaped curve that is centered on the screen.

As of now I see three records for three different NMR solvents i.e. D2O, H2O+D2O and CDCl3.   If your sample happens to be in Methanol next time you use the instrument, you and your sample become unwittingly the guinea pigs for the ATMA program when it searches the needed internal number combinations and stores it. This might take a while to complete.  But the next instance of you using the same Methanol solvent will start the ‘ATMA’ program from its close to optimal position and it will be done in a few seconds.

It can be frustrating and even puzzling to see the ‘atma’ command taking quite a while to get to its optimum, without the hindsight provided by the above information.  So, please note this and be patient if this happens to you.  As I said, this is a one time occurrence only.

NMR Facility Manager

1/19/2021