Overview:

We acquired the ZEISS Xradia 510  Versa 3D X-ray microscope (XRM), which is a high-resolution nano-computed tomography (nano-CT) system that provides nondestructive 3D imaging of microstructural features in a wide range of materials. We made it broadly available to North Carolina State University (NC State), regional, and national users by locating it within the Analytical Instrumentation Facility, a leading open-access materials characterization facility. The XRM is enabling the investigation of internal structures in a wide range of materials, including biological materials like bone and cartilage, biopolymers, multilayer capacitors, additive manufactured metal parts, and fibrous materials. This nano-CT system has several key features that make it ideal for research and training needs, including a dual-stage detector system with both optical and geometric magnification that produce high spatial resolution even at larger working distances (such as 1-micron resolution at a 50-mm working distance). Existing CT systems in the region provide volumetric images but lack the resolution to capture important sub-micron microstructural features. Other tools that have sufficient resolution, such as scanning electron, atomic force, and transmission electron microscopes, require tedious sample preparation, have very limited field of view, and cannot characterize internal features nondestructively. The ZEISS XRM fills this critical gap and is the first of its kind in the Southeast that is in an open-access, core university laboratory, providing unique capability to numerous researchers throughout the region.

Intellectual Merit:

Visualizing and quantifying structural integrity at multiple length scales is an essential need in many areas of scientific and materials research, particularly in biomedical, biological, and fabricated nanoscale materials. These materials have heterogenous underlying nano- and micro-structures, making capturing a representative sample with traditional microscopy techniques challenging and labor intensive. The XRM  has superior capabilities in this respect, because it is noninvasive, allowing for multiple characterization tools in the same sample and making the study of irreplaceable samples (e.g., dinosaur bone) possible. The XRM nano-CT system fills a critical gap in current equipment available, advancing NC State to a world-class X-ray imaging facility and providing support to a large group of diverse researchers across many departments and colleges. This instrument is advancing fundamental research related to material design and characterization, including topics such as materials processing, biological systems, and evolutionary biology, and it will aid in the development of novel treatments in veterinary and regenerative medicine. A nano-CT user group will be established to bring together experts from around the Research Triangle to collaborate in new, and perhaps nontraditional areas, fostering new ideas and breakthroughs with data acquired from this system.

Broader Impacts:

The ZEISS XRM enhances the imaging capabilities at NC State, dramatically enabling better fundamental understandings in key focus areas for both internal and external collaborators. The instrument is housed in the Analytical Instrumentation Facility, an open-access facility that actively engages with internal and external users and the public in general. Positioned within the Research Triangle, which is near more than 6 different universities, including 2 historically black colleges and universities (HBCU), this environment is widely accessible by new researchers, and users worldwide have access to the instrument through the AIF?s sample mail-in service. Instrument access is promoted through the AIF and the Research Triangle Nanotechnology Network. The AIF will develop and organize full-day workshops on X-ray computed tomography aimed at industry and external users, as well as create a Nano-CT User Group that will provide other training and support activities, such as online lectures, tutorials, and discussion boards. The XRM instrument and image analysis will be incorporated in several undergraduate and graduate engineering courses to enhance training for students. Participation of underrepresented groups will be broadened by incorporating the XRM and associated images into several ongoing outreach and engagement activities, both at the AIF and by PIs, and leveraging research relationships with nearby HBCUs.

Last Modified: 11/30/2019
Modified by: Jacqueline H Cole