Microscopy & Microanalysis in Australia

Australia is highly regarded in the international scientific community for its many research strengths. One of these is microscopy and microanalysis, a field in which Australian scientists have long been active. Indeed, Australia was a relatively early adopter of electron microscopy, with its first transmission electron microscope installed during 1945 in the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation or CSIRO (which was actually called the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research at that stage). Active research with that instrument, and the many hundreds of other electron microscopes installed around the country since then, has made important contributions to the science of microscopy. An early example was the work on the multislice image-simulation method proposed by the CSIRO's Cowley and Moodie in 1957. A more recent example was the demonstration in 1991 by Cockayne, McKenzie and Muller that radial distribution functions of amorphous materials could be readily obtained from energy-filtered electron diffraction patterns.

Australian Microscopy and Microanalysis Society (AMMS Inc.)

The AMMS is a not-for-profit organisation that seeks to enhance the science, applications and knowledge of all forms of microscopy and microanalysis techniques throughout Australia and beyond. It is a multidisciplinary body, recognising the importance of microscopy for understanding how the structure and chemistry of materials affect their properties across fields as diverse as materials science, life and medical sciences, and physical sciences. The AMMS is responsible for organising Australia's biennial microscopy conference, the Australian Conference on Microscopy & Microanalysis (ACMM), and provides a variety of meritorius awards, named for leading Australian electron microscopists, that are awarded to recognise outstanding contributions individuals have made to Australian microscopy and microanalysis or to provide young microscopists with travel grants.

Historically, the AMMS started as the Australian Society for Electron Microscopy. This first incarnation of the society was formed in February 1986 at the 9th Australian Conference on Electron Microscopy (the forerunner of today's ACMM), with David Cockayne as its inaugural president. The society's primary objectives were to promote the science of electron microscopy and electron-beam microanalysis, to develop relationships with similar bodies overseas, and to support specialist subgroups. In early 2002, the society became the AMMS in recognition of the importance of all forms of microscopy and microanalysis; its objectives remain essentially the same, although covering microscopy more broadly.
AMMS website

Australian Microscopy & Microanalysis Research Facility (AMMRF)

The AMMRF is a nationwide facility for advanced microscopy and microanalysis techniques. It comprises six nodes across the country: these are the major microscopy centres in the Australian National University, the University of New South Wales, the University of Queensland, the University of Sydney and the University of Western Australia, and a partnership of centres in the University of Adelaide, the University of South Australia and Flinders University. These nodes provide Australian and international researchers with access to more than 140 microscopes and other instruments, 11 of which are flagship instruments that are generally unique in Australia or, in some cases, in the Southern Hemisphere. These instruments are supported by extensive and sophisticated specimen-preparation equipment, by cell-culture, visualisation and image-analysis laboratories. The capability is underpinned by nearly 140 staff members, including technical experts and world-respected academics and scientists. The AMMRF also has links into specialised instruments in smaller centres through Linked Laboratory relationships.
AMMRF website

Monash Centre for Electron Microscopy and Monash Micro Imaging, Monash University

The Monash Centre for Electron Microscopy (MCEM) is a centralised facility for advanced microscopy on the Clayton campus of Monash University, which provides microscopy services to the academics and students on this campus and beyond. It is home to Australia's first aberration-corrected transmission electron microscope, as well as six other electron microscopes, one focussed ion beam system, and two atom probes. Another microscopy research facility on the Clayton campus, Monash Micro Imaging specialises in optical imaging techniques, although it also has electron microscopes, for researchers in the life and medical sciences. Key capabilities include confocal, fluorescence and multiphoton microscopes, and dedicated systems for live-cell imaging.
Monash Centre for Electron Microscopy website
Monash Micro Imaging website

Bio21 Institute, The University of Melbourne

The $140-million Bio21 Molecular Science and Biotechnology Institute is a major Victorian research centre for biotechnology in medical, agricultural and environmental sciences. The institute includes large facilities for chemical spectroscopies, protein crystallography and electron microscopy. The Electron Microscopy Unit has five electron microscopes and clean room for enabling research in the physical and biological sciences.
Electron Microscopy Unit, Bio21 Institute website

Australian Synchrotron

Australia's first such facility, the Australian Synchrotron is a third-generation light source with a lattice energy of 3.0 GeV, which puts it in comparable space to other modern synchrotrons such as Diamond in the UK or SPEAR III in the USA. The mid-range energy of the Australian Synchrotron complements the low-energy (0.7–1.5 GeV) sources in other parts of Asia, such as those in Singapore and Taiwan. Opened in July 2007 and sited in Clayton, Melbourne, the Australian Synchrotron has nine beamlines for doing a variety of spectroscopy, diffraction and scattering experiments. Planning is underway for additional beamlines, as the synchrotron can accommodate more than 30 at full capacity.
Australian Synchrotron website