NSW scientists' groundbreaking microscope

Researchers from Newcastle University are hailing their world-first scanning helium microscope as a game-changer for new discoveries.

Instead of using light as a source, the new microscope developed at the NSW university and the UK's University of Cambridge over the past 20 years uses helium, which doesn't penetrate or change a microscopic sample so scientists can study it in its true state.

"The medical and pharmaceutical applications are very exciting. For the first time in mankind's history we have a microscope that can study human samples in their true, unmasked state. It will enable a new point of view for things like parasites, cell cultures and bacteria," lead researcher Associate Professor Paul Dastoor said.

"Delicate structures, such as biological samples, suffer degradation under existing microscopes because they use light as the source. So the act of observation can destroy or change the properties of the sample being studied," he said.

Helium can create an image of a sensitive structure with zero damage, he said.

"It allows us to study many surfaces for the first time."

Major industries such as medical, defence, automotive and electronics will potentially benefit from the new technology, Prof Dastoor said.

The helium microscope can even examine objects that have an electrical charge, which traditional electron microscopes can't do because they put an electrical charge into the sample, changing the way it works.

"Using this technology we should be able to accurately see electrical circuitry whilst it is running and see clearly where the current is not flowing," Prof Dastoor said.

The team's next goal is to build a smaller version of the prototype.