The scanning electron microscope (SEM) provides image magnification of specimens far exceeding an optical microscope. Whereas the maximum magnification of an optical microscope is limited by the wavelength of light to about one thousand five hundred times, an SEM image is dependent on the wavelength of the electron and can magnify thousands of times and in some cases such as our FESEM can even magnify one million times.

Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope(FESEM)

As scanning electron microscopes have evolved the electron beam cross section has become smaller and smaller increasing magnification several fold. Thermal emission microscopes (our LVSEM) have a beam cross section a few nanometers in diameter but the next generation of SEMs, a field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), has a beam cross section close to one nanometer in diameter.

Focused Ion Beam (FIB)

This state of the art nanotechnology tool incorporates both an electron beam and a Gallium ion beam allowing it to be used for a wide variety of applications in nano- as well as micro-scale technology. Fabrication and manipulation of nanometer sized structures has been very difficult, but with the introduction of the FIB we can now explore structural and molecular details on a scale finer that ever before.

Atomic Force Microscope (AFM)

The Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) uses interactions between a scanning probe and the sample to determine surface features. The AFM is not limited by a wavelength of light, but is limited by the probe geometry. Therefore, it is well-suited for small scans. The AFM can scan on both hard samples and soft samples, in ambient air and in a fluid environment.

Confocal Laser Scanning Microscope (CLSM)

The confocal laser scanning microscope permits one to optically section a fluorescent sample (such as a cell that has been stained with contrasting fluorescent dyes) with superior resolution by using a pinhole to reject light that originates outside of the chosen area. By collecting a series of such images through the depth of a sample, the user may assemble a highly accurate three-dimensional reconstruction of the entire sample.

Thermal XP Indenter(NI)

Nanoindentation provides a simply way to obtain submicron scale mechanical data for a variety of samples. During a typical indentation experiment a diamond tip with a well known geometry is pressed into the sample to a defined maximum depth or load. While indenting various parameters, such as load and depth of penetration, can be measured allowing for a simple extraction of mechanical properties (e.g. modulus and hardness).

XP/DCM Indenter(NI)