Contact us:

Confocal microscopes

Graham Wright
+65 6872 8406

Cristiana Barzaghi
+65 6872 7072

Electron microscopes

Ouyang Xuezhi
+65 6872 7032

Confocal Microscope Guidelines - scroll down or click here

• Training
• Booking
• Guidelines

Electron Microscope Guidelines - click here

Confocal Microscope Guidelines

These guidelines are generalized for the whole facility - specific instructions may apply to each microscope, details of which will be in the individual rooms.

Training

Before using any of our confocal microscopes, training from either Cristiana or Graham is required.

If you are a trained user and are not yet on this list please contact Graham.

If you need a refresher or some specific advice, Cristiana or Graham will be more than happy to help.

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Booking

Users can make bookings up to 2 weeks in advance, and are limited to 2 bookings per fortnight.

Each of the two bookings should not exceed 3 hours during peak time (9am to 6pm), but can be extended out of peak hours in case extra time is needed.

Systems for live imaging (PerkinElmer spinning disk and Leica SP5) do not have restrictions for the number of hours.

Booking the microscopes prior to use is compulsory, using the TLL intranet system. Make sure the booking title contains your phone number (e.g. Graham Wright x8406) so that you can be contacted if necessary.

If you cannot attend a booked session for any reason you must cancel the booking through the TLL intranet and email the confocal list -- to announce the availability.

If you are swapping a session with a member of your lab, you must change the booking details.

If you make a last minute booking, update the copy of the days booking on the confocal room doors.

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Guidelines

Before starting your session ensure that the equipment looks clean, undamaged and has been switched off for longer than 1 hour.

During your session:

• Use individual TLL accounts to login to the systems.
• Ensure that objective lenses only come into contact with the correct immersion medium and only use reasonable amounts (1 drop of oil is usually sufficient).
• If you have any questions or problems during your session there is a list of contact numbers in each confocal room.

After each session:

• Clean immersion lenses after use, wipe away oil using Dusper wipers and 100% ethanol.
• If there is another booking within 2 hours: leave Argon laser on “standby” and the other (solid state, HeNe, etc) lasers on. Turn the HBO/Mercury lamp off unless there is another user within half an hour. Log off your account but do not shut down the computer or the system.
• If no one is booked within two hours turn off all the lasers as well
• If the system has just been turned off, do not switch it back on immediately, wait at least 1 hour.
• Fill in the log book and specify any problems encountered.
• Save files on CDs/DVDs (available in TLL store) and/or on the network. The D-drive is for temporary storage only (max 500MB for each user). If there is a shortage of space on a system, data older than 2 weeks will be deleted.
• Ensure your data has been successfully copied and backed up before deleting it. Users are responsible for their own data and no backups are made by the facility.

Last user of the day:

• Once everything is completely shut down lock the door and return the keys to the security counter on the 1st floor, TLL lobby.
• The last person is responsible to make sure the system has been properly shut down and the room locked. If you are the last user and you cancel your booking, inform the user before you.

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Electron Microscope Guidelines

The expert electron microscopists will help you through all stages of your work. Please contact Annabelle.

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