Specimen chambers have had many designs published over the years describing systems that offer excellent optical properties while allowing specimens to be maintained for varying amounts of time. Ranging in complexity from the simple preparation of a sealed coverslip on a microscope slide to sophisticated perfusion chambers that enable tight control of virtually all environmental variables culture chambers are designed to to allow living specimens to be observed with minimal invasion at high res. - [Read Culture Chambers for Live-Cell Imaging]
In recent years, the increased sensitivity of electron detectors and the availability of low-vacuum or variable-pressure systems have allowed imaging of fresh tissue samples without the need for fixation, drying, and coating. This obviously saves a lot of time, although the image quality may not be as good as that obtained from fixed samples. However, for most applications that tend to be at a relatively low magnification, the quality can be as good as that obtained from fixed samples. - [Read Imaging of Fresh Arabidopsis Tissues in the Scanning Electron Microscope]
In recent years, the increased sensitivity of electron detectors and the availability of low-vacuum or variable-pressure systems have allowed imaging of fresh tissue samples without the need for fixation, drying, and coating. This obviously saves a lot of time, although the image quality may not be as good as that obtained from fixed samples. However, for most applications that tend to be at a relatively low magnification, the quality can be as good as that obtained from fixed samples. - [Read Imaging of Fresh Arabidopsis Tissues in the Scanning Electron Microscope Protocol]