This month for Under the Microscope, we brought the cold temperatures into the lab to look at cheese in cryogenic conditions. A big thanks to Matt Harrison and Marie for suggesting the sample for this month: Stilton/Blue cheese.

Fun fact: The mould that makes stilton blue is Penicillium Roqueforti, the same genus of fungus that produce penicillin the antibiotic. 

Fair to say that when it comes to the nation's favourite annual meal, we're often practising speed and not attention! But have you ever wondered how the components of a stuffing mix come together? What the structure of your carrot is that gives it the perfect crunch? Or even just what on earth is a brussels sprout really about??

The December edition of Under the Microscope powered by JEOL gives us all a sneaky peek at these exact things. Fascinating!! Thanks to Nikki Weston for imaging on the JEOL IT-200 and to Sally Schofield and many curious school children across Nottinghamshire for suggesting!

This August, we put a spin on our Under the Microscope powered by JEOL series by imaging a vinyl record with our IT-200 scanning electron microscope (SEM) - thanks to Dallas Campbell for the suggestion!

What looks like smooth black plastic to the naked eye transforms under the SEM into a stunning landscape of intricate grooves — tiny canyons that carry the music we love.

To celebrate, we created a mock vinyl sleeve cover featuring our mascot, Scopey , DJ-ing on the record itself.

Why This Is Cool:
SEM lets us see the incredible detail and precision of vinyl grooves at the microscale.
Those wavy patterns are the very soundwaves etched into the record!
It’s a fun reminder of how science meets art and technology in everyday objects.

This month at the nmRC, "our job is actually just, you know, Beach!" 

We’re bringing a bit of the sunny season to the lab with our Under the Microscope powered by JEOL initiative! Inspired by staff holidays in the sun, we’ve been imaging sand samples from around the world – each grain a tiny postcard from nature.

The idea came from Greg Corbett, with beautiful imaging by Lorelei Robertson on our JEOL IT-200 SEM.

Featured locations and collectors:
Wembury, UK – Lorelei
Mallorca, Spain – Sally
Liverpool, UK – Sam
Toronto, Canada – Luke

From volcanic fragments to coral remnants, the SEM reveals a hidden universe beneath our feet – or flip-flops!

The best thing since sliced bread... at high magnification! The images are loaf at first sight!

Thanks to Susanne, last month’s winning suggestion, we dove into the microscopic world of bread vs gluten-free bread—and the results are fascinating!

Using our JEOL IT-200 Scanning Electron Microscope, Lorelei Robertson (Electron Microscope Technician) captured the intricate textures and structures that make these everyday loaves so different at the nanoscale.

From gluten’s stretchy protein networks of air pockets to the gluten free's more denser structure, this month’s images reveal just how much is happening beneath the crust.

February’s Under the Microscope winning suggestion comes from our colleagues at the Manuscripts and Special Collections team (Dr Charlotte May and Robert Pearce) and what a fantastic choice it was!

At the nmRC, we love uncovering the hidden stories within historical objects. Our latest collaboration has taken us deep into the spine of a 14th-century manuscript, Speculum Vitae (Mirror of Life), revealing a microscopic world preserved for centuries.

Using optical and electron microscopy, we examined material collected from the book’s spine—fragments of plant matter, pollen grains, flower petals, and even tiny micro-creatures. This nanoworld, frozen in time, offers us a glimpse into the past, providing clues about how this manuscript was used and cared for over the centuries. Imaging by Lorelei Robertson and Dr Richard Cousins using a Leica optical microscope and a JEOL IT-200 scanning electron microscope.

In December we were thrilled to welcome Dr Joshua Smalley, Research Fellow at the University of Leicester and a 2023 finalist on The Great British Bake Off, to the nmRC! Josh brought along an assortment of Christmas bakes, curious to see what they looked like at the microscale. Of course, we couldn’t resist!

From traditional and vegan meringues to slices of Christmas cake, Josh’s festive creations were imaged using scanning electron microscopy by our talented technicians, Lorelei Robertson and Nicola Weston. The results? Spectacular close-ups of these holiday goodies, showcasing the intricate structures that make them so delightful—both on the plate and under the microscope! Imaging was conducted using our JEOL EUROPE IT-200 and Thermo Fisher Scientific (FEI) Q650 SEMs

In October we decided to revisit a previous suggestion! Back in November 2023 we imaged mushrooms in the hope of finding spores, but we were unlucky and couldn't find any in the particular sample. A year later, we were back imaging mushrooms but this time using both standard SEM and environmental SEM (with imaging at -17C to retain the structure). Imaging was performed by Sally Schofield and Nicola Weston who found spores galore, and hyphae!

This month, we’re taking a closer look at something intricate and beautiful—lace! Dr Richard Cousins has examined delicate lace from Cluny Lace under the Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The results? Stunningly detailed images that reveal the intricate weave and fine craftsmanship of this traditional lace, magnified at the microscale! The different structures of the cotton and Nylon strands were also revealed!

Cluny Lace has been producing lace in the UK for centuries, and it’s amazing to witness this heritage craft in such fine detail.Check out the images and explore how something so delicate can be so strong and intricately structured when viewed up close! Nottingham Lace was suggested by Tom Masters! 

June's winning suggestion came from Polly, who suggested seaweed because she really likes eating sushi! Who knew Seaweed would have such detailed microstructure?! Imaging was conducted by Lorelei Robertson using the JEOL IT-200.

For April's Under the Microscope there could only be one winning suggestion! April showers were prominent, especially due to Storm Kathleen, so we thought we would investigate what can be found in a raindrop! Thanks to Julie Briden for the suggestion! To do this, we placed a vial outside our building during the storm and collected rainwater, then we deposited this onto a TEM grid and Dr Julie Watts imaged it using our JEOL 2100F TEM.

February's Under the Microscope is here featuring...SNAILS suggested by Lucy Silvey! When it comes to snails, there's only one expert we could turn to: resident snail aficionado Prof. Angus Davison from the School of Life Sciences. He generously provided us with snail shells and even a love dart for imaging! As this marks our 12th monthly suggestion, we're treating you to fluorescence and electron microscopy images of snail shells and love darts. Fluorescence microscopy images were captured by Jordan Kirby using the Leica M205 FA microscope, and electron microscopy images were captured by Lorelei Robertson using the Thermo Fisher (FEI) XL30 SEM. 

This month's Under the Microscope winning suggestion was suggested by our Director Prof. Paul Brown who wanted to celebrate the release of the new film Wonka by imaging some... POPPING CANDY CHOCOLATE! We unwrapped the magic of Willy Wonka's chocolate factory with scanning electron microscopy images of popping candy chocolate that demonstrate a sweet symphony of science and imagination. Imaging conducted by Nicola Weston on the Thermo Fisher (FEI) Q650 SEM.

We're diving deep into the world of arachnid artistry as this month's Under the Microscope winning suggestion is...Spider Web! The webs were donated to us by Prof. Sara Goodacre of the SpiderLab here at UoN and imaging showed that the thinnest threads were just 110 nm in diameter. We also found an array of different objects that had been caught in the webbing. SEM imaging was conducted by Nicola Weston on the Thermo Fisher (FEI) Quanta 650. Thanks to Reza for the suggestion! 

Delve into the microscopic realm of a crested gecko's toe with our latest Under the Microscope suggestion...Lizard Scales! SEM imaging showed the presence of the scales as well as the microscopic hairs that allow geckos to climb up almost any surface. Imaging was conducted on a JEOL 6060 SEM by Tom Hartman (School of Life Sciences) and Alice Campain. Thanks to Tabitha for the suggestion!

It's hayfever season and there is lots of pollen about, but have you ever wondered what pollen looks like at the microscale? Clare Templey suggested for us to image pine pollen using electron microscopy and we thought it was a great idea! The pollen was collected from some pine trees around University Park campus and then analysed using the JEOL JCM-7000 Neoscope Scanning Electron Microscope by Dr Luke Norman. If you're inspired by this suggestion and would like to nominate something for us to image, let us know!

The winning entry for April 2023 was a porcupine quill which was suggested by Susannah Goh who picked this idea because "Porcupines are always rather fun and interesting in all of their aspects". Imaging of the tip, exterior and cross-section was conducted by Lorelei Robertson on the JEOL IT-200 SEM. Check out the images below, and don't forget to suggest your ideas to be in with a chance to be chosen next month!