Booking Microscope Time:

1. Make all microscope reservations through iLab.  If you do not have an account, request access to the EM Core facility in iLab.  Don't forget to request access through your PI's lab so that you will be able to use the appropriate funding.  Contact David Bulkley if you have questions: [email protected]
2. Krios reservations must conform to the following rules:
   1. Krios bookings are limited to one session at a time per person; a session can be multiple days, but they must be consecutive.  Any existing bookings for an individual user must be in the past for that person to make a new booking. 
   2. Each user is limited to a maximum of 2 weekdays and a minimum of one 24hr day.  Weekends/holidays do not count towards the two day limit (so a Thursday-Sunday booking is allowed, but a Monday-Wednesday booking would NOT be permitted). 
   3. Each lab can book a maximum of 2 weekdays per week, the exception being if time remains free the week of a given opening in iLab.  Bookings may also be extended beyond the two-weekdays-per-lab/two-weekdays-per-person limit in special circumstances that require permission from the facility + PIs. 
   4. Weekends/holidays do not count towards the 2 day limit.
3. Users are expected to load their own samples.  If you need assistance with sample loading, please contact David Bulkley, Glenn Gilbert or Li Wang.
4. Evening reservations on the Arctica/Glacios must use the full 16hr period.  If a reservation starts at 4pm, it must go until at least 8am the following morning.  Reservations that end at 12 midnight will be corrected to the full overnight session.
5. If you will need training/assistance during your session, you must arrange it at least a week in advance with facility staff or an experienced member of your lab.  We will do our best to accommodate you, but scheduling conflicts may lead to additional wait times.  Please contact David Bulkley, Glenn Gilbert, Li Wang or Eric Tse to arrange training.

General Lab Policies

1. If you encounter a problem with a microscope DO NOT attempt to fix it unless you have been given explicit permission to do so by facility staff.  Instead, please report any microscope-related problem to facility staff.
2. Do not use any equipment without supervision unless you have been cleared by facility staff.
3. Never restart any microscope or camera computer without permission.
4. Do not change any alignments on the Arctica/Glacios/Krios without permission from facility staff.
5. When using the vitrobots, always seal the main valve on the ethane tank after use and vent the line.
6. Unless otherwise stated, each lab is responsible for filling any liquid nitrogen dewars used to store samples.
7. DO NOT dump liquid nitrogen onto the floor of the EM Lab.  Use the styrofoam or wooden boxes near the nitrogen tanks to offload any excess liquid nitrogen.

Sample Transfer for Cryo Screening/Data Collection

1. All samples to be loaded onto Arctica/Krios must be listed in the iLab reservation for the corresponding microscope session if you are not loading the grids yourself.
2. Sample grid boxes should be placed into the appropriate tube for the microscope they are to be loaded onto - e.g. grids for the Arctica must be in the "Arctica (to be screened)" tube.
3. Grid boxes should contain only the grids to be loaded.  The facility will thaw all buttons after loading the specified grids, so any extra grids will be lost.
4. If you want to have grids saved after your session, you must provide grid boxes able to accommodate autoloader grids.  If you do not provide appropriate grid boxes, your grids may not be saved.
5. All saved grids will be placed in the corresponding microscope's "saved from" tube.  Please collect these grids promptly as a courtesy to others in the facility.  If you do not, your grid boxes will be transferred to the "Tube of Shame" for a short period and then tossed.

Failure to abide by these policies may result in loss of microscope time, temporary loss of access to the facility, or even permanent loss of access for repeated rule-breaking.