Confocal microscope for Cornell BRC Imaging Facility

Project Summary/Abstract This proposal requests funds for a Zeiss LSM980 confocal microscope for the Cornell Biotechnology Resource Center (BRC)

Imaging Facility. Currently the imaging facility has two inverted confocal microscopes that are heavily used (average 58

hrs/week for the past two years). The 13-year old Zeiss LSM710 has become obsolete. Though it is still functioning, Zeiss

will no longer guarantee repairs or parts for it. A new confocal microscope is critical to ensuring imaging capacity for our many NIH researchers at Cornell on the Ithaca campus. Additionally, the requested confocal microscope will have

capabilities that are not currently available on campus, including the fast Airyscan module, the AI sample finder and near- IR (NIR) detection capabilities. We are requesting a non-linear optical (NLO) capable unit, and will be integrating the

system with an existing multiphoton (NLO) source as well as its associated existing Zeiss beam routing and detection optics.

Data management, scheduling and billing will be accomplished using already established BRC infrastructure. Training will

be carried out by a PhD level staff scientist. The microscope will be available to all researchers on and off campus, and will advance a broad segment of NIH-funded research programs generally by ensuring sufficient confocal capacity, and

specifically by providing new capabilities for projects requiring fast tiling at high resolution, fast intracellular dynamics, and the ability for imaging NIR-emitting fluorophores.