Running head: Electron Microscopy

Electron Microscopy
Vanessa Hernandez
English 1312
The University of Texas at El Paso

Electron Microscopy

Abstract
Science has been constantly progressing. One of the main reasons why science has
evolved over the years is because of research. In Biochemistry and related biology-based
sciences, one of the most elite pieces of equipment used is a cryo-electron microscope. Only ten
microscopes are currently being used in the United States. The University of Texas at El Paso
(UTEP) currently possesses an electron microscope in the hopes of expanding their research and
becoming a Tier One campus. The purpose of this literature review is to display the history and
importance of the electron microscope and how it has affected our way of life.
This literature review will review four questions that will help understand the importance of this
microscope:
1. What are the criteria needed in order to use this power microscope?
2. What kind of experiments does this microscope help with and how is it able to help further
science research?
3. Are there any current advancements being made to make microscope the more essential and
user friendly?
4. What made UTEP more likely able to obtain a 1.2 Million dollar microscope instead of
another university?
These questions will connect you with a deeper understanding about who can use the electron
microscope, what experiments can the microscope assist in, and if there is any current
advancements being made on the microscope. This review will also focus on the University of

Electron Microscopy

Texas at El Paso and their journey of obtaining an elite microscope to improve their science
research.
What are the criteria needed in order to use this power microscope?
Electron microscopy has been used since as early as the 1970s. A series of protocols
called the Springer protocols help prepare your sample to uphold the best imaging under the
electron microscope. According to John Kuo in order for your sample to survive the harsh
vacuum of the electron microscope you must prepare your sample tissue by initially treating the
sample with specialized chemicals that are referred to fixatives. These specialized chemicals are
then dehydrated with ethanol in order to fill them with liquid resin, which will harden and allow
your specimen to be packed into a tube that can then be fitted inside the microscope (Kuo, 2014).
You must use these types of protocols to halt altering your sample; however, other samples such
as plants may have a different set of protocols.
Unlike the University of Texas at El Paso, Purdue University has a website encouraging
students to use their electron microscope. The Purdue University also incorporates the
microscope in to their curriculum by offering courses that help prepare their students to be able
to use the microscope. Purdue university is a Tier One campus, something that the UTEP campus
aspires to be.
What kind of experiments does this microscope help with and how is it able to help further
science research?
According to Bozzola, it took three hundred years to refine the light microscope but no
more than forty years to refine the electron light microscope (Bozzola, 1999). Living in the
present as scientist we now know that the descriptive term of the microscope has passed. The

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descriptive use of the microscope was popular in the nineteen seventies, however, as we
carefully checked the difference within cells, and correctly identified the cell components, such
as the endoplasmic reticulum, science needed more. Ernst Ruska and Max knoll are credited to
making the first electron microscope. This invention was vital to be able to observe cells in detail
instead of a descriptive view of a light microscope. This approach helped develop cell biology
and created several sub structures within the approach of discovering several different cell
usages. A large percentage of scientists that use electron microscopy are cell biologist and
anatomist (Bozzola, 1999). However, electron microscopy has helped shaped and been used by
professionals in Anatomy, Biochemistry, Botany, Cell Biology, Forensic Medicine,
Microbiology, Pathology, Physiology and Toxicology. (Bozzola, 1999).
When dealing with electron microscopy it is important to understand that the essential
aspects of the microscope relate to the physics between the electron beam and the sample
(Bell, 2013). The ionization electrons are used to strip away the tightly bound outer electrons of
the substance. Using this technique the scientists are able to see the electron configuration of the
substance. However, sometimes it is optimal to use a low voltage electron beam because the
higher voltage can inflict damage to your sample and create inaccurate readings. In order to
counteract these unreliable results it is important to use a low voltage electron microscope.
If we are able to combine information from the light and electron microscopy we can
further the understanding in science. As we have seen the improvement of microscope within
forty years, in order to keep moving forward it would be in our best interest to take information
that we have learned from the different types of microscope and make adjustments that make the
tools easier and more reliable to use. An example that Muller-Reichert, uses is by using the
integration techniques of a cancer cell and seeing how the fluorescent and electron microscope

Electron Microscopy

effect the cell allows for a deeper understanding key cellular processes which can be used to
discover drug processes and the life of a cell (Muller-Reichert, 2012).

Electron Microscope
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration invented the x-ray diffraction.
However, the x-ray diffraction wasnt able to tell them what kind of surface morphology or
roughness. Therefore, they had to use the electron microscopy because the microscope had a
high enough resolution to capture the surface of a sample (Kim, 2012). By being able to use two
different types of electron microscopes and cross-referencing the data they were able to get the
accurate description of the surface.

Electron Microscopy

Above is the Focused Ion Beam Method

According to Hung, by using electron microscopy you can determine the cracks in
silicon. The microscope is able to find cracks that were between 27-59 mm2 (Hung, 2012). The
electron microscope is helpful in finding cracks in spacecraft materials.

Space Craft Silicon

Are there any current advancements being made to make microscope the more essential
and user friendly?
Polymers range from being plastic, rubbers, and even dyes. These common samples that
can be found in your everyday household appliances and even medicine are important to your
everyday way of life. When one thinks of electron microscope, one pictures a large laboratory
observing particles or spacecraft material. However, polymers are composed of macromolecules,
which are essentially molecules that have thousand of repeating units called monomers (Michler,
2008). The polymeric material is based off of the variety of patterns that the monomers can

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configure. These configurations make both the synthetic polymeric materials that can occur in
nature, such as milk and protein. These polymers are useful materials because they are
environmentally stable and lightweight characteristics (Michler, 2008). Therefore, polymers
make a large amount of the environment. By being part of the larger environment, it is essential
to discover the properties of polymeric material. The electron microscope is a very resourceful
way to determine the surface ability of a polymer, which is crucial to the production of a polymer
and to our everyday life.
Steps that are used in determining the Mechanical Properties of Polymers

Molecular Structure

Supermolecular Structures

Micromehanical processes
of deformatin and structure

Mechanica Properties

In the figure above, the electron microscope helps in determining the molecular
structure, which in turn helps determine the super molecular structures, which will then lead to
processes and deformation, otherwise known as the mechanical properties.

Electron Microscopy

Plastic Bottles are great example of polymers and their flexibility

Electron Microscopy was used to see the aggregates of Carbon, which was in the form of
natural gas air, propane, and flame exhausts. By using the electron microscope they were able to
measure the nanoparticle aggregation in pico-meters (Soto, 2005).
Electron microscopy has important uses in solid-state chemistry, physics, material
science, chemical engineering, and crystallography. Electron microscopy helps in determining
catalyst materials and processes (Gai, 2003). The techniques of low voltage high resolution,
atomic resolution, and the electron induced analytical spectroscopic help with finding which
materials to use for the catalyst and processes ( Gai, 2003). These techniques also play a major
in role in biochemistry, such as finding active sites, atomic structure, and the atomic scale
chemistry. Electron microscopy helps in the development of a more efficient role of the limited
natural resources.
What made UTEP more likely able to obtain a 1.2 Million dollar microscope instead of
another university?
Having only ten in the nation, obtaining a cryo-electron microscope was a great feat for
the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). One of UTEPs main goals is to become a Tier One

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school. This microscope is valued at about 1.8 million dollars, the way UTEP was able to fund
this new instrument was primarily by the National Science Foundation Grant. One reason the
university was more likely to obtain this microscope, instead of another university is primarily
because Dr. Bernal who pushed to have a cryo-electron facility. Their individual goal is to
hopefully make UTEP a Tier One campus, which has a diverse student demographic. (2014) This
information was from a web-based article that did not state an author. However, the publisher
was UTEP News. The only information that was available regarding this question, only
discussed Dr. Bernals research, which is one of the reasons why the microscope was purchased
in the first place. Dr. Bernal graduated from Purdue, which uses an electron microscope as well.
A survey was conducted by a UTEP student from the Biochemistry department to try to
collect information on the students knowledge of the electron microscope that UTEP currently
has. As the results were collected it was discovered that very few students were aware that the
university has a high quality microscope. The parameter of the research was done by creating
survey questions and asking twenty-five junior level biochemistry majors if they have ever used
the electron microscope? Do they know which building the microscope is located and whether or
not they knew what the electron microscope could do? Surprisingly, 80% of the students didnt
know we even had an electron microscope at the university, 50% only knew about what a
microscope is capable of because of the methodologies section of the Biochemistry course, and
only 20% knew where the microscope was located.
Conclusion
In conclusion, this literary review has viewed the historic and current uses of the electron
microscope. If we didnt have an electron microscope would we still have the lightweight

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10

characteristics of bottles? Or how far into research would we have gotten to combat cancer cells?
We may not know the full extent to what this microscope can offer, at this moment this
microscope part of the elite and is not obsolete, however we do know that this microscope is vital
to scientific research everywhere. In order to keep science moving forward it is important to both
teach students to use the equipment and to continue to explore the uses of the microscope.

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11

References
Bell, D. C., & Erdman, N. (2013). Low voltage electron microscopy. Chichester, West Sussex:
Wiley, published in association with the Royal Microscopical Society. Retrieved from
http://0- proquest.safaribooksonline.com.lib.utep.edu/
?uiCode=utxelpaso&xmlId=9781118498484

Bozzola, J. J., & Russell, L. D. (1999). Electron microscopy: Principles and techniques for
biologists.(2nd) doi:058518187X

Gai, P. L., Boyes, E. D., & NetLibrary, I. (2003). Electron microscopy in heterogeneous
catalysis. Bristol; Philadelphia: IoP, Institute of Physics Pub. Retrieved from http://0www.netlibrary.com.lib.utep.edu/urlapi.asp?action=summary& v=1&bookid=155342

Hung, C., De Groh, K. K., Banks, B. A., & NASA Glenn Research Center. (2012). Optical and
scanning electron microscopy of the materials international space station experiment
(MISSE) spacecraft silicone experiment. Cleveland, Ohio: National Aeronautics and Space
Administration, Glenn Research Center. Retrieved from http://purl.fdlp.gov/GPO/gpo32100

Kim, H. J., & Langley Research Center. (2012). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM)
sample preparation of si[subscript 1-x]ge[subscript x] in c-plane sapphire substrate.
Hampton, Va.: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Langley Research Center.
Retrieved from http://purl.fdlp.gov/GPO/gpo30968

Kuo, J. (2014). Electron microscopy (3rd ed.). New York: Humana Press. Retrieved from
http://0- www.springerprotocols.com.lib.utep.edu/
doiresolver?genre=book&pid=10.1007/978-1-62703-776-1

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Michler, G. H. (2008). Electron microscopy of polymers. Berlin: Springer. Retrieved from

http://0-dx.doi.org.lib.utep.edu/10.1007/; http://dx.doi.org /10.1007/978-3-540-36352-1;
http:// dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-36352-1

Mller-Reichert, T., Verkade, P., & Ebooks Corporation. (2012). Correlative light and electron
microscopy. Amsterdam, Netherlands; Boston, Mass.: Elsevier / Academic Press. Retrieved
from http://www.UTEP.eblib.com/EBLWeb/patron/?target=patron&
extendedid=P_989200_0

Soto, K. F. (2005). A transmission electron microscopy (TEM) study of soot, carbon nanotubes,
and related fullerene nanopolyhedra in common fuel-gas combustion sources Retrieved
from http://0- proquest.umi.com.lib.utep.edu/
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http://digitalcommons.utep.edu/dissertations/

UTEP Professor Looks to Atomic Detail for Medical Breakthroughs. (2014). Retrieved October
31, 2014, from http://news.utep.edu/?p=25851