Delmic Fast Automated Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope

Why FAST-EM?

Multibeam imaging with 64 parallel electron streams that make image acquisition 100 times faster than standard SEMs.
An automated, reliable system enables primary focus on analysis rather than microscope supervision.
High throughput, high resolution at a consistent 4 nm.
Numerous samples can be loaded onto a stable support stage at the same time, accelerating workflow.
Easy to operate Odemis software gives dynamic control over projects.

Connectomics, FAST-EM, and the Future of Cell Biology

The quest to better understand how cells and tissues function starts with visualizing them in 3D. While confocal imaging provides powerful 3D reconstructions in light microscopy, it lacks the resolution needed to visualize the connections between cells. Even x-ray microscopy doesn’t provide the needed resolution for seeing these connections. To solve the task of creating “connectomic” reconstructions at the sub-cellular level, electron microscopy must be used. SEM is an excellent choice for imaging, but collecting the amount of data needed to reconstruct even a fruit fly brain would take years of uninterrupted imaging. However, by using multibeam SEM technology we can transform a normal, single beam SEM into one that has 64 beams for parallel imaging. This greatly increases the amount of data that can be collected and makes it possible to image larger volumes.

The ability to reconstruct large volumes of brain, eye, heart, lung, kidney, and other tissues in high resolution is helping researchers understand the root causes of disease and form effective therapeutics against these illnesses. The FAST-EM is designed for automation, reliability, and to be a workhorse for data collection in connectomics along with other 3D biological reconstructions.