\ Alta Tecnologia \ Area Science Park at M&M 2023 Microscopy & MicroAnalysis in Minneapolis

The 2023 edition of M&M Microscopy & MicroAnalysis  took place in Minneapolis (USA) on 23-27 July. The annual meeting of the Microscopy Society of America and the Microanalysis Society brings together scientists, technologists and researchers, with the aim of sharing knowledge, networking, and looking at scientific and technological innovations in the world of microscopy.

Area Science Park attended the international event for the first time, represented by Regina Ciancio, Head of the Electron Microscopy Laboratory (LAME).

Regina moderated the symposium entitled “Machine Intelligence in Action: Delivering Resilient, Sustainable, and Reconfigurable Microscope Ecosystems,” in which the new frontiers of microscopy in discovering and designing material, chemical and biological systems were discussed.

During the congress, a special session was also held on the IMPRESS project, which Regina coordinates. Funded by the European Union and coordinated by CNR-IOM, the project aims to revolutionise the field of transmission electron microscopy by bringing together scientists, companies and industry experts to co-develop new interoperable prototypes.

IMPRESS has 19 partners from some 11 European countries, and aims to develop an interoperable platform based on standardised modular components, designed to be flexible and adaptable to different microscopes and other types of equipment.

The platform will be used to perform a wide range of multimodal correlative experiments using methodological options not currently accessible with commercially available electron microscopes, to meet the needs of a wide range of users. To achieve this, IMPRESS will make use of Pre-Commercial Procurement (PCP): an innovative tool through which companies with different competences can compete to contribute, together with scientists, to designing and building prototypes for different innovative applications.

The “IMPRESS Supplier” event provided the platform for announcing the PCP Open Market Consultation, inviting companies to become an integral part of the project. The event was attended by around 80 people and provided an opportunity to showcase the various aspects of the European project and the PCP process, and to answer numerous questions from the audience of international scientists and leading companies in the field of electron microscopy.

The next IMPRESS and PCP meeting will be held on 1 September 2023 in Düsseldorf.  See full details.