MRI-R2: Acquisition of High Resolution Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope (ESEM) for Characterization of Hydrogels, Nano-/Micro-Structures, & Cell-Material Interfaces

施密特“该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案(公法111-5)资助的。”该提案要求从FEI购买广达250FEG环境扫描电子显微镜(ESEM)，用于在接近生物的环境条件下对生物样本进行纳米级成像和分析。拟议中的仪器将安装在德克萨斯大学奥斯汀分校(UT Austin)的纳米和分子科学与技术中心(CNM)内，供代表10个学术部门的学生和教职员工用户进行原创研究。该仪器将允许研究人员在精确控制的环境条件下检查水合材料的结构和组成，这将在药物输送、组织工程、抗药性细菌菌株和纳米传感器的开发等领域使用水合材料的许多尖端研究领域提供迄今无法达到的详细程度(低至1.4 nm分辨率)。环境扫描电子显微镜可配置为扫描透射式电子显微镜(STEM)，用于对水合样品进行更深入的分析，并将通过能量耗尽X射线分析(EDS)进行元素数据分析。德克萨斯大学奥斯汀分校拥有许多最先进的常规扫描电子显微镜成像系统，但严重缺乏当代的环境扫描电子显微镜。目前，校园里只有一个环境扫描电子显微镜用户设施(地球科学)，但这是一个较老的系统，缺乏分辨率(拟议系统的钨丝系统与肖特基场发射系统)和成像生物样品和微/纳米材料更自然、更水合状态所需的能力。由于拟议的环境扫描电子显微镜能够对水合样品成像，以前无法使用电子显微镜的研究人员现在将拥有一个强大的工具，将开辟新的研究途径。此外，研究人员使用以前使用电子显微镜的生物和其他水合样本将获得更好的和补充的成像数据。环境扫描电子显微镜将由德克萨斯材料研究所(TMI)和CNM共同维护，它将位于CNM的纳米科学和技术(NST)大楼的中心。该仪器将由现任设施经理Hugo Celio博士管理，他在使用电子显微镜、培训其他人使用电子显微镜以及进行仪器维护方面拥有丰富的经验。还将购买与制造商的延长维护合同。这一工具将通过CNM已经成功实施的控制访问系统向所有符合条件的用户随时提供，该系统在访问与安全之间取得平衡。

0959037Schmidt"This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)."This proposal requests the purchase of a Quanta 250 FEG environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM) from FEI for nanometer-scale imaging and analysis of biological samples under near-biological environmental conditions. The proposed instrument is to be housed within the Center for Nano- and Molecular Science and Technology (CNM) at the University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin), and used for original research by student and faculty users representing 10 academic departments. The instrument will allow researchers to examine the structure and composition of hydrated materials under precisely controlled environmental conditions, which will provide a heretofore-unattainable degree of detail (down to 1.4 nm resolution) in the many areas of cutting-edge research using hydrated materials in areas such as drug delivery, tissue engineering, drug-resistant bacterial strains, and development of nanosensors to name just a few. The ESEM can be configured to operate as a scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) for even more in-depth analysis of hydrated samples, and will allow elemental data analysis via energy-depletion x-ray analysis (EDS). The University of Texas at Austin has a number of state-of-the-art conventional SEM imaging systems, but is critically lacking a contemporary ESEM. Currently, there is only one ESEM user-facility on campus (in Geosciences), but this is an older system that lacks the resolution (tungsten filament system versus Schottky field emission for the proposed system) and capabilities required for imaging biological samples and micro/nano-materials in their more natural, hydrated state. Due to the ability of the proposed ESEM to image hydrated samples, researchers who were previously unable to use electron microscopy will now have a powerful tool that will open new avenues of research. Additionally, researchers working with biological and other hydrated samples that previously used electron microscopy will have better and complementary imaging data. The ESEM will be maintained by the Texas Materials Institute (TMI) in conjunction with the CNM and it will be centrally located in the CNM's Nano Science and Technology (NST) building. The instrument will be managed by the current facility manager, Dr. Hugo Celio, who has extensive experience in using electron microscopes, in training others in their use, and in performing instrument maintenance. An extended maintenance contract with the manufacturer will also be purchased. This instrument will be available at all times for all eligible users, via a system of controlled access already successfully implemented by the CNM, which balances access with security.