The acquisition of multidimensional NMR spectra within a single scan.

A scheme enabling the complete sampling of multidimensional NMR domains within a single continuous acquisition is introduced and exemplified. Provided that an analyte's signal is sufficiently strong, the acquisition time of multidimensional NMR experiments can thus be shortened by orders of magnitude. This could enable the characterization of transient events such as proteins folding, 2D NMR experiments on samples being chromatographed, bring the duration of higher dimensional experiments (e.g., 4D NMR) into the lifetime of most proteins under physiological conditions, and facilitate the incorporation of spectroscopic 2D sequences into in vivo imaging investigations. The protocol is compatible with existing multidimensional pulse sequences and can be implemented by using conventional hardware; its performance is exemplified here with a variety of homonuclear 2D NMR acquisitions.