Life Science Research

This is the place to expand your knowledge, research capabilities, and practical applications of microscopy in various scientific fields. Learn how to achieve precise visualization, image interpretation, and research advancements. Find insightful information on advanced microscopy, imaging techniques, sample preparation, and image analysis. Topics covered include cell biology, neuroscience, and cancer research with a focus on cutting-edge applications and innovations.

Image of magnetic steel taken with a 100x objective using Kerr microscopy. The magnetic domains in the grains appear in the image with lighter and darker patterns. A few domains are marked with red arrows. Courtesy of Florian Lang-Melzian, Robert Bosch GmbH, Germany.

Rapidly Visualizing Magnetic Domains in Steel with Kerr Microscopy

The rotation of polarized light after interaction with magnetic domains in a material, known as the Kerr effect, enables the investigation of magnetized samples with Kerr microscopy. It allows rapid…

Material sample with a large height, size, and weight being observed with an inverted microscope.

Five Inverted-Microscope Advantages for Industrial Applications

With inverted microscopes, you look at samples from below since their optics are placed under the sample, with upright microscopes you look at samples from above. Traditionally, inverted microscopes…

Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) stained with osmium tetroxide (OsO4), sectioned with a DIATOME diamond knife at room temperature, and then imaged with HAADF TEM.

Ultramicrotomy Techniques for Materials Sectioning

Learn about ultramicrotomy for materials sectioning when investigating polymers and brittle materials with transmission (TEM) or scanning electron microscopy (SEM) or atomic force microscopy.

Top Issues Related to Standards for Rating Non-Metallic Inclusions in Steel

Supplying components and products made of steel to users worldwide can require that a single batch be compliant with multiple steel quality standards. This user demand creates significant challenges…

Analyzing Non-metallic Inclusions in Steel

Oftentimes we find ourselves caught up in tedious analyses by reticle and comparison chart, time-consuming double-evaluation according to several standards or subjective inspection results with a bias…

Rate the Quality of Your Steel: Free Webinar and Report

This webinar and report describe optimal microscopy solutions for rating steel quality in terms of non-metallic inclusions and reviews the various international and regional standards concerning…

Polarizing Microscope Image Gallery

Polarized light microscopy (also known as polarizing microscopy) is an important method used in different fields, including research and quality assurance. It goes beyond just producing images at high…

Metallography – an Introduction

This article gives an overview of metallography and metallic alloy characterization. Different microscopy techniques are used to study the alloy microstructure, i.e., microscale structure of grains,…

Macroscale to Nanoscale Pore Analysis of Shale and Carbonate Rocks

Physical porosity in rocks, like shale and carbonate, has a large effect on the their storage capacity. The pore geometries also affect their permeability. Imaging the visible pore space provides…