We are a consortium of university-based microscopy facilities united by values of collaboration, accessibility, excellence and innovation. Each year, over 3,500 researchers from universities and industry use our instruments and expertise in facilities around Australia. Over 150,000 trainee microscopists around the world use our online training tools.
Microscopy Australia (ROR ID: https://ror.org/042mm0k03) is funded by federal (NCRIS) and state governments and participating institutions. We report high-impact science outcomes from this investment in our annual Research Highlights and online news. We also engage the public in science with unique exhibitions and learning resources.
Microscopy Australia enables access to an array of high-end microscopy platforms and associated scientific expertise in strategic locations to efficiently service Australia’s microscopy needs. Microscopy Australia also has formal connections with a range of other specialised linked laboratories.
Microscopy Australia (formerly known as the AMMRF) has been empowering research excellence for over a decade. A recent renewal of our government funding ensures that our strategic vision and collaboration continues to drive Australian research and deliver industry solutions for many years to come.
University-based research facilities collaborating through an unincorporated joint venture form the core of Microscopy Australia. Their wide range of complimentary instrument types and expertise collectively provide infrastructure for high-demand and cutting-edge techniques. All offer scanning and transmission electron microscopy and many have light and confocal instruments. See Facility Directory .
Linked Labs are research facilities affiliated with Microscopy Australia. They provide additional expertise and benefits to Australian researchers and industry users. The Microscopy Australia facilities, have strategic links to additional research laboratories to increase access and support for researchers via Linked Labs. See Linked Lab Directory .
Lisa is Microscopy Australia’s Chief Executive Officer and has over 15 years of experience in university administration, strategic research management in Centres of Excellence, and operations and management of national collaborative research infrastructure. She has been with Microscopy Australia since 2019 as the Chief Operating Officer. She received her PhD in Cognitive Science, investigating speech and language, from Macquarie University in 2005. Lisa was the Chief Operating Officer of the ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition and its Disorders (CCD; 2011 – 2019).
In her role as Chief Executive Officer, Lisa leads our team of support staff to deliver outstanding research infrastructure support to users across the nine Microscopy Australia facilities. She manages the strategic planning and operations of Microscopy Australia, including the financial management, reporting responsibilities and future planning. She oversees communication, marketing, stakeholder relations and engagement activities to strengthen industry, community and institutional collaboration.
Prof. Julie Cairney grew up in the outback town of Broken Hill, Australia. She studied Materials Science and Engineering at UNSW under a scholarship from Pasminco Limited. In 2002, she was awarded a PhD (Physical Metallurgy) also from UNSW. The next few years were spent working as a researcher at the University of Birmingham, UK and the Max Planck Institute for Metals Research in Stuttgart, Germany, before returning to Australia. Julie is currently a professor in the School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering and Scientific Advisor of Microscopy Australia.
Julie is an expert in advanced microscopy techniques that can image matter down to atomic scale, to study materials. The materials’ microstructure can then be related to their properties. This knowledge is used to engineer advanced materials with desirable properties such as superalloys, steels and hard coatings. In this way Julie’s work contributes to the development of stronger, lighter materials that require less energy to produce, for applications in industries like aerospace, construction and manufacturing. She is also active in applying atomic-scale microscopy to a wider range of research fields.
After completing her B.Sc. and Ph.D. at the University of Adelaide’s Biochemistry Department, Jenny spent nine years undertaking basic research in molecular and developmental biology at several institutions in London. Before joining Microscopy Australia, Jenny worked for the Wellcome Trust, a large medical research charity in the UK. There she was responsible for building their collection of microscopic and medical images and licensing it to academic and commercial users.
Jenny promotes the benefits and outcomes of Microscopy Australia facilities to the Australian research community and industry, encouraging a wide range of collaborations. She also liaises with our various stakeholders to communicate return on investment in advanced microscopy and the research it enables. She is responsible for managing the ongoing development and management of our online training resource, MyScope, our Technique Finder tool and our touring exhibitions.
Click on the link for a list of our directors and their contact details
| Dr Greg Smith Chair |
| Dr Deborah Rathjen Independent board member |
| dr katherine smith Independent board member |
| Prof. Simon Ringer The University of Sydney |
| Prof. Jacek Jasieniak Monash University |
| Prof. Paul Bonnington The University of Queensland |
| Prof. Ute Roessner The Australian National University |
| Dr Bruce Northcote University of Adelaide |
| Prof. Andrew Page The University of Western Australia |
| Prof. Grainne Moran The University of New South Wales |
| Prof. RAFAL DUNIN-BORKOWSKI Ernst Ruska-Centre for Microscopy and Spectroscopy |
| Prof. Joachim Mayer Ernst Ruska Centre for Microscopy and Spectroscopy |
| Prof. Hamish fraser The Ohio State University |
| Dr Jan Ellenberg EMBL |
| Dr Rob Hough CSIRO |
| Dr Antje KepplER Euro-BioImaging Bio-Hub | EMBL |
| Prof. Brian Wilson The University of Toronto |
| Prof. Odile Stéphan Université Paris Sud |
| Prof. kazuhiro hono National Institute for Materials Science, Japan |
| A/Prof. Paul Verkade The University of Bristol |
| Prof. Jodie Bradby Australian National University |
| Prof. colin humphreys Queen Mary University of London |
| Dr Rhonda Stroud US Naval Research Laboratory |
| Prof. Peter Nellist The University of Oxford |
| Prof. Xiaozhou Liao The University of Sydney |
| Prof. Mitra Taheri John Hopkins University |
| Dr Tom Kelly Steam Instruments Inc |
| Prof. Jin Zou University of Queensland |
| Prof. Tim White Nanyang Technology University |
This annual publication is available in print or as a PDF download. Discover high-impact science, enabled by Microscopy Australia (formerly the AMMRF). If you would like to receive a printed copy, please contact us with your postal address.
