Acquisition of a Scanning Electron Microscope for Research and Training in the Biology, Chemistry, Geography-Geology, and Physics programs at Illinois State University

伊利诺斯州立大学获得了一笔资助，以获得一台环境扫描电子显微镜，用于生物、化学、地理地质和物理项目的研究和培训。显微镜提供了观察不同标本的精细细节和分析其元素组成的能力。在环境模式下，可以不做任何准备地检查活的有机体。这使得观察精致的标本成为可能，这些标本可能会被传统的制备方法所改变。教师和学生在研究项目中使用该范围，包括记录植物的生理应激；识别单细胞藻类，作为过去环境条件的指标；突变果蝇的特征；用元素分析法评价钒元素配位配合物的化学性质；描述团簇;记录细胞扩增缺陷植物的表面结构；研究细菌-宿主相互作用和细菌生物膜的结构，评估化石中的地球化学相互作用，对热电晶格进行纳米级测量，比较花的结构和发育，评估钴酸锂的合成；并对正在开发的用于改进扫描探针显微镜的新电极的材料组成进行了表征。这些不同研究的结果将发表在同行评议的期刊上，并酌情整合到课程和教员网站上。该瞄准镜的远程控制操作软件将允许学生在教室中远程观察标本。该范围将在各种社区外展活动中展出，并将提供给伊利诺伊州中部的其他学术研究人员。

Illinois State University has been awarded a grant to acquire an environmental scanning electron microscope for research and training in the Biology, Chemistry, Geography-Geology, and Physics programs. The microscope provides capabilities for observation of fine details of diverse specimens and for analysis of their elemental composition. In environmental mode, living organisms can be examined with no preparation. This makes it possible to observe delicate specimens that would be altered by conventional preparation methods. Faculty and students use the scope in research projects that include documenting physiological stress in plants; identifying single-celled algae that are indicators of past environmental conditions; characterizing mutant fruit flies; using elemental analysis to assess the chemistry of coordination complexes of the element vanadium; characterizing nanospheres; documenting surface structures in plants with defective cell expansion; examining structure of bacteria-host interactions and bacterial biofilms, evaluating geochemical interactions in fossils, making nanoscale measurements of thermoelectric lattices, comparing flower structure and development, evaluating synthesis of lithium cobalt oxide; and characterizing the material composition of new electrodes being developed for an improved scanning probe microscope. The results of these diverse studies will be published in peer-reviewed journals and integrated into courses and faculty websites as appropriate. Software for remote control operation of the scope will allow students in classrooms to observe specimens remotely. The scope will be featured at various community outreach events, and it will be available to other academic researchers in central Illinois.