Studying cartilage in SEM

[Mary Tang]

Hi Paul --

I'm so glad you wrote!  -- I meant to get back to you much sooner, but 
had lost your contact info.

Not that I really want to turn customers away, but I was wondering if 
you had considered using the Beckman Cell Sciences Imaging Facility  
instead (http://taltos.stanford.edu/).  Although we do have a critical 
point dryer and SEM that would suffice for your needs, we really are 
designed to be a fabrication lab, not an analytical lab.  We completely 
lack the expertise to help you with your samples -- we could train you 
on the tools, but then sample prep (which is, as you probably know, 98% 
of the success in SEMming a biological sample) would be completely up to 
you.  And, you would be sharing with people making devices, so the 
systems are really not set up for biological analysis.  Beckman has a 
critical point dryer and SEM -- and most importantly, experts who know 
how to prep and image your samples.

If there is a reason that you would rather not use the Beckman center, I 
would really like to know, as we generally refer people with biological 
samples there. 

Mary

Paul Briant wrote:

>Dear SpecMat committee,
>I am interested in using the SEM (S-800) to study pig cartilage samples.  I
>am fixing the samples in my own lab, and then critical point drying and
>sputter coating them at the medical school.  I would then like to use the
>S-800 at your facility to study the samples.  I spoke with James Conway
>about the project and he said that using the SEM would be fine, but I was
>told I should also email your committee.
>
>Thank you very much for your time,
>Paul Briant
>
>  
>


-- 
Mary X. Tang, Ph.D.
Stanford Nanofabrication Facility
CIS Room 136, Mail Code 4070
Stanford, CA  94305
(650)723-9980
mtang at stanford.edu
http://snf.stanford.edu