Light microscopes are quintessential icons of the biological sciences, critical infrastructure in nearly all life science laboratories. Every cell culture lab has one, as do high school teaching labs; for less than $100, you can pick one up at your local science or toy store. For many applications light-microscope technologies are more or less routine, and the systems that enable them are essentially turnkey—which might suggest that light microscopy has plateaued, technologically speaking. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Researchers on the cutting edge are constantly pushing the limits of the instruments’ optics, seeking to extract ever-sharper images from increasingly demanding samples, all while inflicting the least possible photodamage. From live-cell imaging to confocal microscopy, super-resolution imaging to multiphoton excitation, new microscopy technologies and applications appear regularly in the literature.
The Scientist asked four microscopy innovators to talk about the novel applications and approaches they developed in their labs. ...
