Tiny Tech 40: Seeing through Liquids with an Electron Microscope

Today from the world of Tiny Tech:

When scientists take pictures or movies of atom-sized objects, they often use a T.E.M. – a type of electron microscope that transmits an electron beam through the sample. At first, however, only solids could have their picture taken, because liquids tend to evaporate into the vacuum that the electron beam needs to travel through. To take a T.E.M. picture of something that is surrounded by or contains a liquid, such as a battery or cell, it first had to be dried or frozen. Unfortunately, information about the sample was often lost because drying or freezing changed its shape or its ability to move.

Now, scientists have a way to take T.E.M. pictures of samples that contain liquids, by sandwiching a very thin sample between two membranes. The membranes prevent evaporation of the liquid while allowing the electron beam to pass through.

This new technique has been used to study things such as the inner workings of cells, the synthesis of nanoparticles in liquids and what happens to battery materials during use. So, I guess you could say that taking electron microscope pictures of liquids – is making solid contributions to modern science.

Tiny Tech is made possible by the National Science Foundation and WUFT. To learn more about Tiny Tech, go to tinytechradio.org.

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