Franklin moved to Birkbeck College and began TMV structural studies.
In 1953, Rosalind Franklin transitioned to Birkbeck College from King’s College, where she shifted her focus to the structural analysis of the tobacco mosaic virus (TMV). This period marked a significant career development wherein she applied her X-ray crystallography expertise to virology, producing an impressive number of 17 papers during her tenure. Her groundbreaking research provided insights into the arrangement and functionality of viruses, laying foundational knowledge for the field of structural virology.