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Anyone who has not been trained on a particular microscope or analysis computer must be directly supervised by someone who has been trained until they receive training themselves from a member of the light microscopy facility.
Anyone who wishes to use a microscope without supervision must arrange to be trained by a light microscopy facility staff member first. New users must attend a compulsory 2-hour introductory training session before being given access to a microscope on the booking system. This basic training will be provided using a standard specimen provided by the light microscopy groupfacility. In addition, if you need to use advanced microscopy techniques as part of your project you must attend a compulsory supervised advanced training session in which your own specimen will be used to demonstrate the equipment and software tools necessary for your project. Even if you aren't doing anything very advanced it would be worth booking one of these sessions; especially if you're new to microscopy or unfamiliar with the instruments.
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Once an introductory or advanced training session has been booked it will be entered on the Microscope Training Calendar. If there is already a training session scheduled you can join that session provided it isn’t already fully subscribed but please email the address above to let us know you will be attending. Once you have received introductory training on a microscope you will be given access to the Faces Agendo Scheduling System where you will be able to book any microscope you've been trained on. You will also be entered onto the lmcb-lm-users@ucl.ac.uk mailing list, which microscope users can use to communicate with one another. Unless you will be doing nothing more advanced than imaging fixed slides it is highly likely that you will then have to attend an advanced training session using your own specimen.
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*Note that the transmitted light technique Differential Interference Contrast (DIC or Nomarski Contrast) is available on several of the confocal microscopes but is taught in advanced sessions rather than introductory training
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- How to calibrate the motorised stage (if necessary)
- How to set up a multi-well plate specimen for imaging at 37 degrees C in a CO2 atmosphere
- How to use the other available specimen inserts
- How to set up single and multi-point acquisitions with or without auto-focus
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- Differential Interference Contrast (DIC aka. Nomarski Contrast) on confocal microscopes
- Imaging of samples in non-standard or home-built specimen holders
- Live imaging of any kind
- Photo-bleaching, photo-activation and photo-conversion techniques (e.g. FRAP, FLIP, etc)
- Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET)
- Techniques requiring the use of a motorised stage (e.g. multi-position time-lapse, tiling/stitching)
- Multiphoton imaging and photo-ablation
- Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy (FCS) or Fluorescence Cross-correlation Spectroscopy (FCCS)
Advanced training will consist of a session where you will operate the microscope with one of your own specimens under the supervision of a member of the light microscopy facility. It is likely that some specimens (live specimens in particular) will require specific stage adapters and environmental conditions so please give details of the specimen to the staff member who will be supervising you so that the necessary arrangements can be made. It is also important that you check with the light microscopy facility to find out whether your particular procedure or specimen can be accommodated using the current equipment in the facility.
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