Microscopy resources

CeNSR welcomes all researchers (faculty and students) from Concordia University, other universities, research centers, as well as researchers from industry sectors.

New users should consult the facility manager to determine the best microscopy imaging for their needs.

To register as a new user, please send an email to the facility manager: nooshin.movahed@concordia.ca.

To access the Microscopes’ rooms and use the TEM, SEM, and AFM you must complete the following steps:

1. Registration – Send an email to the CeNSR manager, Nooshin Movahed (nooshin.movahed@concordia.ca) and describe the following:

• Your contact details (name, Concordia netname (if applicable), email address)
• Your supervisor's name and contact details
• Emergency contact details (phone number)
• Information about your samples, including potential health and safety issues
• A brief description of what information or statistics you want to derive from your images

2. After receiving the above information, we will contact your supervisor to authorize your training and instrument usage and to provide acceptance of applicable fees.

3. You will be contacted to attend a short zoom meeting.

4. All users MUST be trained on the microscope before they can book the instrument. A scheduled training session will be arranged at the new user meeting, according to the user’s prior experience and microscope needs.

5. After training, users will receive an invitation email and the instruction on how to use the booking system (see below).

6. Acknowledgments: use of the CeNSR requires the agreement of our acknowledgments policy (see below).

Use of the CeNSR infrastructure must comply with our booking/ cancellation policy. This policy facilitates fair and equitable access for all users.

• Users are not allowed to share their scheduling account.
• “Prime time” for instrument use corresponds to weekdays, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm No prime time is in effect on weekends.
• “After-hours” for instrument use corresponds to (weekdays, 7:00 am to 9:00 am and 5:00 pm to 11:00 pm) and (weekends 9:00 am to 5:00 pm).
• Evenings and weekends: Experienced users MUST BE APPROVED by the facility manager to operate an instrument outside of normal working hours (weekdays, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm). After-hours users must have sufficient experience (10 sessions of logged use) and must demonstrate that they are capable of operating the equipment without assistance. They must be comfortable with the microscope software and hardware to the extent that they can successfully troubleshoot and address minor equipment problems independently.
• Users must also sign the logbook with the exact time that they start using the equipment and the exact time they finish. Users will be charged for time used (rounded up to the nearest 30 minutes) however, if users regularly book instruments for longer than required, they will be charged accordingly.
• Booking is available up to two weeks in advance.
• During prime time, 30 min slots are set up for reservations. Maximum time allowed per booking is 120 minutes and each user can reserve up to 2 bookings of 2 hours per day (total maximum of 4 hrs per day).
• Last minute cancellation: If users cannot show up for the time they have booked, and they do not cancel a booking at least 24 hours in advance they will be charged half price for the entire booking unless someone else uses the microscope at that time. Please contact the facility manager as soon as you know that you cannot use your time so that an email can be sent to the mailing list of users to allow them to book your time slot.
• No-show policy: If users do not show up during the first 30 minutes of their booking the instrument is considered available for others to use. The user who booked the equipment will be billed half price for the time booked.
  • Users who consistently do not show up for appointments will be billed for the entire booked time. This rule is to ensure that the equipment housed within the center is used efficiently and is accessible to all users.
• You MUST agree with the last-minute cancellation and the no-show policy.
  
  

It is forbidden to connect any USB device to the instrument and analysis computers.

The facility offers free-of-charge access to 1TB per laboratory on the CeNSR Microscopes server to store data for a project.

The storage server allows user to export their images from the acquisition station and share information with their teams. Its main purpose is to give you a place where you can save your microscopy images after your session while reducing the risk of malware from portable drives and USB keys. It also ensures the good functioning of the microscope.

You can save your data directly to the server or, use Microsoft OneDrive (free cloud storage) to access all your OneDrive files without taking up space on the server.

• To use the OneDrive file hosting service, you need to login to OneDrive with your Concordia Microsoft or Office 365 account and upload your files from the Shared folder on the MPC to the OneDrive.
• Data must be removed from the server on a regular basis as the server is NOT meant for long-term storage and archival. It is recommended that files related to published projects and old students be transferred to an external hard drive and remove from the server.
• Absolutely no data should stay more than 2 days on any computer that controls a microscope (acquisition computers).
• All data must be stored on the server. Any files left on the microscope computers for more than one week can be deleted without notice.
• CeNSR does not guarantee the safety or integrity of any data on the server. It is the responsibility of each user to make additional copies of the data and keep it in a safe place.
• CeNSR does not make a backup of any form of the data saved on the server.
• Please be advised that the server is a short-term data storage, and your data will be erased after 30 days without notice. To ensure an equitable share of the storage space, accounts will be set up the following way:
  • Each laboratory will be issued a 1TB volume available for all its members.
  • You can log in to the CeNSR Microscopes server using your Concordia netname. The users’ accounts will be a subfolder of their supervisor’s account.
  • If that space is too limiting, a PI can request additional space by emailing nooshin.movahed@concordia.ca and providing a valid justification.
  • Each lab space is accessible to the lab’s registered users and the CeNSR administrator only.
• The server is meant to be used for scientific purposes only; personal files are forbidden.
  
  

• Publications (posters or papers) that include images or data obtained in the CeNSR must be acknowledged. This is important for helping CeNSR to leverage funding. Additionally, when writing grants, you will be able to show that you have access to a facility that has the required infrastructure and technical expertise to help you address your scientific questions.
  • Example of acknowledgment: "The authors acknowledge the Centre for NanoScience Research funded by Concordia University, Montreal, Canada”.
• We request a copy of the publication in PDF format so that we can keep track of successful research projects that were accomplished using the Centre.
• Please consider the CeNSR staff as co-authors on publications where they have performed experiments for you, contributed extensively to data interpretation or participated actively in your project.
   

• According to Concordia EHS policy, handling samples above biohazard Level 2 will not be allowed in the facility.
• Imaging samples at biohazard Level 2 will require special training.

These rules are subject to change if deemed necessary by the facility manager and directors.

• All users MUST be trained on the microscope before they can sign up to use that microscope.
• All users MUST be trained by the facility manager.
• Users will not be permitted to train other new users.
• Users can only work on instruments for which they have received training.
• Users MUST be part of a laboratory or group that is registered with the facility and has provided account information for billing of fees.
• Initial training sessions will be scheduled according to the user’s prior knowledge or experimental needs and the user is required to bring a sample similar to one they will be using for their project to work with during the training session. This makes the training more specific to a given application and helps address specific sample issues.
• Users will NOT be charged if the equipment is not functioning. Please inform the facility manager immediately if there is a problem with the equipment.
• The facility assumes no responsibility for data stored on the instrument computers. Images left on the computers for more than one week can be deleted without notice.
• It is forbidden to connect any USB-storage device to the instrument and analysis computers.
• When advanced technical assistance is required, it will be by appointment only.
• Users have the responsibility to learn and follow the equipment-specific rules.
• In any publications you have, that include images taken in the facility, you are asked to include standard acknowledgment and follow the CeNSR acknowledgment policy.
• Prior to their training each user will have to read and sign the rules and guidelines.

For the TEM (Talos™ L120C with EDS capability)

*Only approved users will be allowed to book after-hours instrument time.

For the AFM (Bruker Multimode AFM/STM)

*Only approved users will be allowed to book after-hours instrument time.

For the SEM (Phenom ProX SEM with EDS capability)

*Only approved users will be allowed to book after-hours instrument time.

Faces is a web-based scheduling program that allows registered users access from any web browser. Users can contact each other via e-mail when scheduling conflicts arise. The faces scheduling system is developed and maintained at the Complex Carbohydrate Research Center at The University of Georgia and is run through their web server.

1. You will receive an email from the manager of the FACES scheduling system. This email has a link to the FACES website (http://faces.ccrc.uga.edu). Also note, the email will tell you that you are a member of the group CENSR and gives you your login id (Your last name). A temporary password is also included in this email. After logging in, you can change your temporary password.
2. Click on the hyperlink to go to the FACES website.
3. In Group, type CENSR (and select save). Also, type your username which is your last name (and you may choose to save this). Finally, type your temporary password. You must press GO to login to FACES.
4. You will see a welcome screen. Choose “Password” to change your password to something easier to remember.
5. After you have changed your password, you may choose schedules for the resources you are trained to use. You may want to use the zoom button if you need to look more closely at the times. Use the left mouse button to click once into the time slot you want to reserve. The slot you have chosen will light up in yellow color. Click on your starting time slot, then click on your finishing time slot.
   Note:
   • During prime time, 30 min slots are set up for reservations. Maximum time allowed per appointment is 120 minutes and each user can reserve up to 2 appointments of 2 hours per day (total maximum of 4 hrs per day).
   • Only approved users will be allowed to book after-hours instrument time. Booking and cancellation policy (See above)
6. The next screen will open up. It will show the time you have chosen for your appointment. Besides, there is a list of options that you can choose from (such as training/ sample service/ instrument time) as well as a comments line. Into the comments line, please write what type of experiment you will be carrying out. Then submit your request by clicking the “Go!” button.
7. If your appointment has been accepted, you will see the message ‘Your appointment was successfully added to the Schedule’.
8. Clicking OK will take you back to the calendar where you will see the appointment time blocked out in red. If your appointment violates some of the restrictions, you will get the message:
   ‘The appointment was NOT made!’; The program will also display the reason, e.g., “you requested more appointments than allowed.”
9. Once you are satisfied with your appointment, log out of the program. The time slot on the instrument is now reserved for you.
10. If you have trouble accessing a resource that you believe you are trained to use, forget your password, or have other issues about FACES, please feel free to contact the facility manager: nooshin.movahed@concordia.ca.

Note: You MUST agree with the Booking and cancellation policy (See above)