Optical microscopy has become a powerful experimental tool capable of simultaneously visualizing large scale structures such as entire cells, and fluorescently labeled single molecules within these complex structures. It has found important applications in diverse scientific fields.  The Brandeis Materials Science Research and Enginering Center will offer a one-week intense summer course in optical microscopy from June 20 – June 24, 2011, “Introduction to Optical Microscopy.“  The primary goal of the course is to train students in the fundamentals of microscopy and optics. The students will start by constructing a bright field and fluorescence microscope from simple optical components before learning how to use research grade optical microscopes. After completing the course, students will acquire knowledge necessary for using optical microscopes at limits of their capabilities and critically evaluating their performance.

This summer course is a condensed version of a popular graduate level course in  Quantitative Biology (Quantitative Biology Instrumentation Laboratory QB 120 b).  Our goal is to make this course accessible to students with all scientific backgrounds.  The course will be taught by Zvonimir Dogic, who is a faculty member in the Physics Department at Brandeis University.

More information and application procedures are available at the following website: http://www.brandeis.edu/mrsec/summercourses.html.