Project R-16588

Tau-SCALE - Infrastructure for multiphoton, super-sharp, super-sensitive and time-resolved confocal microscopy. (Research)

Confocal microscopes are the beating heart of imaging core facilities, as evidenced also at the UHasselt Advanced Optical Microscopy Centre by continuously booked, but likewise aging systems. We apply here for a novel confocal microscope, the PicoQuant Luminosa. This system surpasses mainstream commercial confocal imaging by leaps and bounds. Uniquely equipped with pulsed lasers and time-resolved spatial detection it allows the most advanced fluorescence-based dynamic structural biology and molecular biophysics investigations. Methodologically, it offers multicolor (lifetime) imaging at never-before-seen image sharpness, as well as advanced single-molecule sensitivity. Unique software workflows allow both novice and expert users to apply quantitative dynamic functional microscopy in daily routine. Finally, it is multiphoton-ready to integrate an existing laser. Complementing and, soon, (1) replacing our flagship confocal allows meeting user demands and avoiding out-of-service situations, but additionally creates the unique and critical opportunity to (2) competitively valorize research, (3) support scientific excellence in core UHasselt research areas such as neurodegeneration, inflammation, lipid metabolism, plastic pollution and soot exposure, (4) boast inter-university collaboration, and, most importantly (5) consolidate the pioneering role of AOMC in dynamic structural biology in Flanders and EuroBioImaging.

01 May 2026 - 30 April 2030