USING THE EMU FACILITIES

Registration is required in order to use any of the facilities provided. An application form can be obtained from the EM Unit. Please see guidelines on filling up the application form. Tha application will be sent to the Director for approval. Upon approval, an email will be sent to the applicant and the principal investigator, with information on the assigned EM officer-in-charge and the charges. The applicant is then free to liaise with the officer-in-charge for training and any other queries.

GUIDELINES ON APPLICATION FORMS

There are two parts of the form. The first part is the Rules and Regulations of the EM Unit. All users are required to conform to the rules stated. This part is to be read and retained by the applicant. If there is any doubts about the rules, please clarify with the officer-in-charge.

The second part is the form to be filled up. The top part of the form will include the details of the applicant and if you are a NUS staff or student, please remember to fill in your matriculation or staff number. This is for the activation of your card in the door access system. Next is the details of the principal investigator, and if the PI is not the one providing the funds for the usage, please fill in the details of the funding party in the box below the PI's details. In such cases, invoices will be sent to the funding party instead of the principal investigator. Please be very sure of where the funds are coming from as the origin will decide the billing category you are assigned to.

Lastly, both signatures of the applicant and principal investigator are required in order to complete the registration process.

TRAINING PROGRAMME

Before using the EM facilities, all users have to go through a training programme according to their needs. An EM officer-in-charge will be assigned to the user and the user is to liaise with the officer for all matters.

The training programme for TEM is split into 3 parts:

Processing of samples:

This step involves 1.5 days of sample preparation (post-fixation, dehydration, infiltration and embedding) and another 24 hours of polymerization of the resin. You will need to spend the first 1.5 days in the laboratory, after which the samples are left in the oven for 24 hours before collection.

Sectioning of samples:

Samples embedded in resin are trimmed carefully into the right area to allow proper semi-thin sectioning. Semi-thin sections are viewed under the light microscope to ascertain the desired area to be viewed using the electron microscope. Ultra-thin sectioning is done from the same resin block once the srea is ascertained. Sections are picked up on copper grids and staining is done before viewing.

The progress of this step will depend on how fast you can learn. Some individuals can learn it in 6 days while some may take a couple of weeks. A lot of practice is needed for better progress and some mental visualization of the concept will help you learn pretty fast.

Viewing of samples:

Copper grids with ultra-thin sections are placed into the electron microscope. Instructions on the operation of the microscope and digital imaging software will be given. It will take approximately 1 to 2 hours for this step.

The training programme for SEM is split into 2 parts:

Processing of samples:

This step involves 1 day of sample preparation (post-fixation, dehydration, and critical point drying). The dried samples are then mounted onto specimen stubs and coated with a layer of gold using the sputter coater.

Viewing of samples:

Specimen stubs are placed into the electron microscope. Instructions on the operation of the microscope and digital imaging software will be given. It will take approximately 1 to 2 hours for this step.