Experimental strategies in Laue crystallography

The efficiency of data collection using the Laue technique varies with the wavelength range, the crystal symmetry, the orientation of the crystal in the X-ray beam, the crystal-to-film distance and the acceptance angle of the detector. By optimizing these parameters and by taking advantage of the diffraction symmetry represented by the Laue class, it is often possible to collect a nearly complete data set in one or two exposures. This paper discusses general strategies for data collection and presents results from a computer survey to find optimal crystal orientations for the eleven Laue classes.