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Lecture

Electron Microscopy: Instrumentation in Life Sciences

In course

PHYS-468: Physics of life

Life has emerged on our planet from physical principles such as molecular self-organization, thermodynamics, stochastics and iterative refinement. This course will introduce the physical methods to study life and will discuss the quantitative and physical ...

Description

This lecture covers the instrumentation used in electron microscopy for life sciences, including techniques like SPECT, PET, CT, MRI, OCT, synchrotron X-ray tomography, and helium microscopy. It explains the limitations of single instruments in covering all scales, the components of a transmission electron microscope, electron sources, and various electron microscopes used in research. The lecture also delves into specimen preparation, electron beam interactions, scattering terminology, and contrast transfer functions in electron microscopy.

Instructor

Henning Paul-Julius Stahlberg

Positions: Since 2020 Prof. Physics, IPHYS, SB, EPFL, Switzerland 2009 – 2021 Prof. Structural Biology, Biozentrum, University Basel, Switzerland 2009 – 2010 Adj. Assoc. Prof. Molecular & Cellular Biology, UC Davis, CA, USA 2007 – 2009 Assoc. Prof. Molecular & Cellular Biology, UC Davis, CA, USA 2003 – 2007 Assist. Prof. Molecular & Cellular Biology, UC Davis, CA, USA Education: 2002 Habilitation, Biozentrum, University Basel, Switzerland 1997 – 2003 Postdoctoral Fellow, Biozentrum, University Basel, Switzerland 1992 – 1997 PhD Student, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland 1990 – 1991 Diploma Thesis in Solid State Physics, TU Berlin, Germany 1987 – 1993 Study of Physics, TU Berlin, Germany Selected Awards & Honors: 2009 W.M.Keck Award 2004 CAREER award, NSF, USA 2002 Habilitation, University Basel, Switzerland Selected Memberships: 2008 – 2013 Chancellor’s Fellow Award, UC Davis, CA, USA 2004 – 2009 Faculty of 1000 Since 1992 Swiss Society for Optics and Microscopy (SSOM)

Official source

Related concepts (32)

Transmission electron microscopy

Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is a microscopy technique in which a beam of electrons is transmitted through a specimen to form an image. The specimen is most often an ultrathin section less than 100 nm thick or a suspension on a grid. An image is formed from the interaction of the electrons with the sample as the beam is transmitted through the specimen. The image is then magnified and focused onto an imaging device, such as a fluorescent screen, a layer of photographic film, or a sensor such as a scintillator attached to a charge-coupled device.

Electron microscope

An electron microscope is a microscope that uses a beam of electrons as a source of illumination. They use electron optics that are analogous to the glass lenses of an optical light microscope. As the wavelength of an electron can be up to 100,000 times shorter than that of visible light, electron microscopes have a higher resolution of about 0.1 nm, which compares to about 200 nm for light microscopes.

Scanning transmission electron microscopy

A scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) is a type of transmission electron microscope (TEM). Pronunciation is [stɛm] or [ɛsti:i:ɛm]. As with a conventional transmission electron microscope (CTEM), images are formed by electrons passing through a sufficiently thin specimen. However, unlike CTEM, in STEM the electron beam is focused to a fine spot (with the typical spot size 0.05 – 0.2 nm) which is then scanned over the sample in a raster illumination system constructed so that the sample is illuminated at each point with the beam parallel to the optical axis.

Cryogenic electron microscopy

Cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM) is a cryomicroscopy technique applied on samples cooled to cryogenic temperatures. For biological specimens, the structure is preserved by embedding in an environment of vitreous ice. An aqueous sample solution is applied to a grid-mesh and plunge-frozen in liquid ethane or a mixture of liquid ethane and propane. While development of the technique began in the 1970s, recent advances in detector technology and software algorithms have allowed for the determination of biomolecular structures at near-atomic resolution.

Scanning electron microscope

A scanning electron microscope (SEM) is a type of electron microscope that produces images of a sample by scanning the surface with a focused beam of electrons. The electrons interact with atoms in the sample, producing various signals that contain information about the surface topography and composition of the sample. The electron beam is scanned in a raster scan pattern, and the position of the beam is combined with the intensity of the detected signal to produce an image.

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Microscopic Analyses & Electron Sources

Covers microscopic analyses using optical and electron microscopy, as well as electron sources.

Transmission Electron Microscopy: basics

Covers the principles, applications, and components of Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), including imaging modes and advanced techniques.

SEM Basics: Introduction to Electron Microscopy

Introduces the basics of scanning electron microscopy, covering electron sources, lenses, vacuum system, and detectors.

Electron Microscopy: Components and Operation

Explores the history and operation of electron microscopes, focusing on components and resolving power.

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