Waksman Confocal Microscope Core Facility

The Waksman Confocal Imaging Facility provides training and consultation on the use of our confocal microscopes. The facility is equiped with two Leica TCS confocal microscopes, SP5 II and the SP8, as well as a workstation. Our scanning confocal microscopes are capable of high resolution imaging of labeled cell components in three dimensional space by optical sectioning. Imaging can be done with most standard fluorophores in live or fixed samples.

Both feature inverted microscopes, spectral detection allowing for dynamic adjustment of detected emission wavelengths, sequential scanning to further reduce emission signal overlap, easy to use programs for creating Z-stacks and 3-D images, multiple programs for post-imaging, and hybrid detectors for large dynamic range, increased signal sensitivity and decreased background noise, as well as standard PMT detectors, Z-stack compensation, and photon counting. The SP5 II is also capable of resonant scanning which significantly reduces imaging times, and it has notch filters, FRET, FRAP, deconvolution, and a motorized stage allowing multi-position time lapse, mark and find, and tile scanning.