You must be an authorized user, trained by the CCAM staff, staurovsky@uchc.edu, 860-679-4686, to use each microscope. The fee for the training session is a one time fee, however there is a training session for each microscope. If you do not wish to become a user, you may arrange to work with a CCAM staff, person at the hourly rate. Please see Microscopy Training for more information.

CCAM IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR DATA STORAGE. Users are provided with remote storage for their data files. It is up to each lab to manage this storage space and to back up their data. Use of the microscopes and imaging workstations is restricted to authorized users. There are NO exceptions to this policy. If you need assistance with your CAM account or data storage, please visit High Performance Computing Facility for assistance.

Microscope account users have access to CCAM software (including Metamorph image processing software from Molecular Devices, and Imaris 3-D rendering and analysis software from Bitplane graphics). Contact CCAM staff for more information on accessing CCAM analysis software.

Please plan ahead for microscope usage. The signup for a given day on the online microscope calendars opens 1 week in advance. Users are guaranteed 4 hours per week and you are invited to sign up for more time, as the schedule permits, however if other users have trouble getting access to the microscopes you may be asked to forfeit the time exceeding your guaranteed 4 hours. Please note, time used during the week before 9 a.m. and after 5 p.m., as well as weekend time is not counted in this guaranteed 4 hour limit. In addition, please do not sign up for more than 4 hours at one session unless you have requested additional time from either Dr. Yi Wu, yiwu@uchc.edu, 860-679-1449 or Susan Staurovsky, staurovsky@uchc.edu, 860-679-4686. Normally, additional time will be allotted for live cell experiments or for outside collaborations. If you have repeated difficulty signing up for time on any microscope, please contact Yi or Susan and we will do our best to get you access to the microscope in a reasonable time frame.

If you cannot keep your appointment, please delete your name from the sign up. Please try not to sign up for time unless you know you will use it. It is understandable that some experiments will fail or other problems might arise. However, given the high demand for these instruments, it is inconsiderate to other researchers to consistently sign up and then cancel sessions at the last minute.

After 4 p.m., unless you know for certain that someone else is using the microscope, please shut down the instrument. We have had several incidences where the equipment was left running all night because a later user failed to show up. After work hours and weekend use is available for trained, competent users. Please check with CCAM Staff prior to signing up.