Patent ID: 7316805

Claim:
A crystal-forming device for forming crystals by vapor diffusion, comprising: a tray having a base and an upright peripheral wall extending from the base supporting an upper tray surface; a plurality of wells supported by the upper tray surface for holding a precipitating solution with each well having an open upper end and a light transmitting bottom; and, a plurality of removable caps to cover and seal the open upper ends of the wells and for supporting the crystallization within each well, a plurality of resilient members, each resilient member disposed and creating a seal between each cap and each well, each cap having on an underside thereof a ridge with a distal edge that forms a cavity with a transparent crystallization support therein, the support being spaced from the distal edge of the ridge confronting the well, for suspending a droplet of solution to be crystallized over the precipitating solution in each well the ridge circumscribing the support for preventing the droplet of solution from spreading beyond the support, and a first integral locking member associated with each cap for structurally engaging a corresponding second locking member associated with each well to releasably interlock the cap to the well in a sealed manner without the need or use of a contaminating sealing material between the cap and the well; and wherein the combination of the light transmitting bottom and the transparent crystallization support allows visual examination and monitoring through the crystallization support of crystal growth within the well under a microscope.