The Pico Center of Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) recently held its first user exchange conference to help make SUSTech’s high-end electron microscopes and research equipment more accessible for research and educational purposes across SUSTech. The conference was attended by nearly 90 students and faculty members.

Deputy Dean He Jiaqing of the College of Sciences, head of the Pico Center and Department of Physics, first shared the process behind creating the Pico Center and the current situation of it.

The relevant departmental official spoke about the research equipment available for research and educational purposes. They also spoke about the processes for reserving research facilities, management rules and charging conditions for each device. They took numerous questions about non-conductive sample imaging, magnetic sample characterization, and air-sensitive material characterization while taking suggestions on the functional expansion of research equipment.

The Pico Center has provided more than 50,000 machine-time services to more than 250 users of 104 research groups from 14 departments including materials science, physics, and chemistry. The conference further promoted communication between the Pico Center’s management and users, further enhancing the management efficiency of large-scale scientific research equipment.