Advanced Imaging Facility (AIF)

The Advanced Imaging Facility (AIF) is the open access light microscopy facility of the University of Leicester and offers a wide range microscope technologies and image analysis resources. Since August 2026 the AIF is one of the six Technical and Research Infrastructure Services (TRIS) Research Platforms within the university of Leicester.

The AIF has annually over 100 microscope users and is open to all users of the University of Leicester, members of the other Universities of the Midlands Innovation (Aston, Birmingham, Cranfield, Keele, Loughborough, Nottingham and Warwick), as well as users of other academic institutions and commercial users. Please contact the manager for additional information.

Resources

• Fluorescence, brightfield, DIC and label free imaging
• Widefield, superresolution and confocal imaging
• Lightsheet microscopy
• High throughput slide scanning/digital pathology
• 2D/3D/4D imaging
• Fixed and live cell imaging
• Multi-colour fluorescence imaging
• Multi-position imaging
• Spectral imaging
• F-techniques (FRAP, FLIP, FRET)
• High content screening
• Metaphase finding
• Optical trapping experiments
• Correlative Light and Electron Microscopy (CLEM), in collaboration with the EM Facility
• Immunohistochemistry colour imaging
• Quantitative imaging
• Image analysis and processing (ImageJ/Fiji macros, Imaris, Huygens deconvolution)
• Training and teaching
• Advice

Prof Andrew Hudson has been appointed academic lead for Advanced Imaging Research Platform.

Advanced Imaging Platform User Group

With the introduction of the Advanced Imaging Research Platform we will also setup a user group. This group will play an important role in helping to shape the platform's future direction, priorities and development. Members will be selected in the near future:

• Professor Andrew Hudson (Chair; Academic lead Advanced Imaging Research Platform)
• Dr Kees Straatman (Co-chair; Manager AIF)
• To be confirmed

Publications

Acknowledgement in publications and presentations of work performed in the Advanced Imaging Facility is vital to secure support and funding necessary to maintain the facility.

If you publish work supported by the AIF, e.g. by using one or more of our microscope systems or if you had support for image or data analysis, it is obligatory to include a sentence in the acknowledgement in addition to any personal acknowledgement or co-authorship and send a reference to us. View our list of publications.

A reference example:

"We thank the Advanced Imaging Facility (RRID:SCR_020967) at the University of Leicester for support."

Please include the RRID number (Research Resource IDentifier) what is a international unique identifier allocated to the AIF.

Additionally, for some of the equipment a separate acknowledgement of the funding body is required. If you have used the:

• Zeiss LSM 980 Airyscan2 system: you also have to acknowledge the BBSRC grant BB/S019510/1.
• Akoya PhenoCycler-Fusion system: you are required to acknowledge the MRC grant MR/X012107/1.
• Zeiss Elyra 7 Lattice SIM2 system: you have to acknowledge the BBSRC grant BB/X019705/1.
• Zeiss Lattice Lightsheet microscope: you have to acknowledge the BBSRC grant UKRI2258
• Lumicks C-Trap system: you have to acknowledge the BBSRC grant UKRI3310