January 23, 2009: The University of Texas at San Antonio has received a $1.2 million gift from the Robert J. Kleberg, Jr. and Helen C. Kleberg Foundation to buy a second-generation aberration-corrected electron microscope — one of only two in the world.

The instrument will help nanotechnology researchers develop new cancer therapies and treatments that combat a variety of human diseases. The microscope is not just for UTSA, the university announced in a news release. It will be available to scientists around the globe and across many disciplines, the release said.

UTSA will house its new microscope, manufactured by JEOL USA, in its Advanced Microscopy Laboratory under the supervision of world-renowned researcher Miguel Yacaman, chair of the College of Sciences’ Department of Physics and Astronomy. There, it will support research in nanotechnology, materials science, medicine, biology, chemistry and engineering, allowing scientists to view images at a resolution of less than one angstrom.

UTSA’s microscope is slated for installation in October 2009. The instrument takes six months to fabricate and three months to install. Once up and running, researchers from across the world can send samples to UTSA, then through remote access, conduct experiments without leaving their home laboratories.