Optimization of data collection taking radiation damage into account

To take into account the effects of radiation damage, new algorithms for the optimization of data-collection strategies have been implemented in the software package BEST. The intensity variation related to radiation damage is approximated by log-linear functions of resolution and cumulative X-ray dose. Based on an accurate prediction of the basic characteristics of data yet to be collected, BEST establishes objective relationships between the accessible data completeness, resolution and signal-to-noise statistics that can be achieved in an experiment and designs an optimal plan for data collection.