Facilities
Affiliated Facilities
- Transmission Electron Microscopy
- Magnetic Resonance Imaging
- Institute for Biophysical Dynamics Nanobiology Facility
1. Transmission Electron Microscopy
Faculty Supervisor for MRSEC: Prof. Norbert Scherer
Technical Director for PSD: Dr. Xiaozhou Liao
This facility is centered around a state-of-the-art, fully computer-controlled S/TEM (300kV FEI Tecnai F30). The S/TEM is equipped with a high performance CCD camera with 4k x 4k resolution for image recording, an X-ray energy dispersive spectrometer for compositional analysis, and STEM detectors for bright-field, annular dark-field, and high-angle annual dark-field imaging. The S/TEM has a point-to-point resolution of 0.2 nm when operated in the TEM mode and a spatial resolution of also 0.2 nm for the STEM mode. This S/TEM is extensively used for imaging of polymer and nanocrystal samples (IRG 2). Prof. R. Josephs (MGCB) and Dr. Liao teach a TEM training course during Spring Quarter. Students registering for the course will be provided instruction and microscope time at no additional cost. Similar instruction is also available at other times of the year with an hourly fee for microscope and instruction time. Once certified by Josephs and/or Liao, users can sign up for time on the S/TEM over the web. Scherer, Josephs and Jaeger are members of a committee that oversees the use of the S/TEM and establishes hourly user fees for cost recovery. The S/TEM will move to the new building in 2006, forming a synergistic cluster with the SEM and SPM instrumentation maintained by MRSEC's Materials Prep Lab. More details about this facility as well as a calendar to sign up for instrument time electronically can be found here (https://flowcity.bsd.uchicago.edu/osrf/emf/mainsite/index.htm).
2. Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Faculty Supervisor: Prof. G. Karczmar (Radiology)
The MRI research facility maintains a 4.7T GE/Bruker system with 7" horizontal magnet bore and is located in the Radiology Department. The facility is currently being updated with a new computer system and r.f. amplifiers, significantly enhancing its versatility. In collaboration with Karczmar, non-magnetic inserts with specialized r.f. pick-up coils, vibration exciters and shear cells have been constructed enabling us to employ MRI as a non-invasive probe of granular materials. This capability will be of particular use for research in IRGs 1& 3. MRSEC students participate in courses on magnet safety and MRI technique taught by Karczmar. Hourly fees for use of the MRI facility are set in negotiations between MRSEC and the Biological Sciences Core Facilities management.
3. Institute for Biophysical Dynamics Nanobiology Facility
Technical director: Dr. Justin E. Jureller (Institute for Biophysical Dynamics)
These facility is managed by the Institute for Biophysical Dynamics and includes a cluster featuring confocal & fluorescence microscopy and 3D reconstruction. Analytical instruments includes new NMR, mass spectrometry, and X-ray diffraction equipment. Much of this equipment has already been moved into dedicated suites in the new Center for Integrative Sciences, in close proximity to MRSEC-operated facilities.