Electron Microscopy

At this event, students had the chance to personally drive an Electron Microscope, "looking" at a sample by blasting a beam of electrons at it, controlling their motion using electric and magnetic fields. These electrons have so much energy that they are moving at speeds comparable to the speed of light. What happens when the electrons collide with the sample? - more electrons. Detecting these, the interaction data is transformed by computer-processing into an image of the sample. The stunning magnifications possible with these instruments enable us to analyse both structure and composition on a nano-scale.

As well as touring the facilities of the University of Queensland's Centre for Microscopy and Microanalysis, the activity featured an introduction to the science behind electron microscopy, and showcased some of the diverse work that it services. Electron microscopes provide specialist imaging in fields as varied as materials science, the semiconductor industry, and the study of biological processes within organic cells.

You can find more background information on what electron microscopes are and how they work at the website http://www.unl.edu/CMRAcfem/em.htm.