Leica SPE3
Location: Room 2.16, MRC Building
The SPE3 is a semi-automated, inverted Leica confocal with an automated stage and z galvanometer insert. It can handle slides, dishes and plates, but currently lacks an incubation system for live cell imaging. However it has a quad dichroic mirror meaning a rapid switch between channels.
There is only one photomultiplier tube (PMT) so all multi-channel acquisition is done sequentially
A galvanometer driven stage insert is used to change the focus when optically sectioning samples. The speed of this device means that XZY scans are possible in addition to the conventional XYZ scan.
The ACS objective lenses, which have been designed to correct for colour registration errors caused by chromatic aberration, do not have a flat field, so best results are achieved at zooms ≥1.6.
There is also the option on this machine to carry out small screens thanks to a matrix screener software
The following PDF lists the recommended start-up and shut-down order for the machine: SPE3_StartUp_Shut Down.pdf