Equipment: MRI: Track 1 Acquisition of a state-of-the-art confocal microscope to advance research and undergraduate education for students in South Texas

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi (TAMU-CC) will acquire a confocal microscope imaging system to expand research, education, and workforce training. The instrument will support students and researchers at TAMU-CC, Del Mar College, and Texas A&M University-Kingsville, strengthening pathways from community college to graduate education and broadening participation in STEM. This project serves the national interest by improving the Nation’s capacity for scientific discovery and workforce development. It will enable research and training in areas important to the United States, including biotechnology, advanced materials, tissue engineering, and thermal management relevant to next-generation electronics and semiconductors. Undergraduate students will be introduced to advanced imaging through coursework, and dozens of graduate and undergraduate researchers will receive hands-on training. By expanding access to state-of-the-art research tools, the project will promote the progress of science, advance national prosperity and welfare, and help develop a highly skilled STEM workforce. The project will install a Nikon AX NSPARC confocal microscope imaging system as a shared-use instrument for multidisciplinary research in biology, chemistry, engineering, and materials-related applications. The system provides super-resolution imaging, high sensitivity, low noise, rapid image acquisition, multichannel fluorescence detection, and environmental control for live-sample imaging, enabling 3D and 4D imaging of organisms, cells, tissues, biofilms, and engineered materials. It will be used to quantify how environmental stressors alter bone development across generations, determine how coral and oyster calcification responds to changing seawater chemistry, and track how nanoparticles interact with cells and organisms for therapeutic applications. Additional studies will examine arterial wall structure, microbial and plant systems, and microlayer dynamics important for heat transfer on micro- and nanostructured surfaces. The instrument will serve investigators and support training for graduate students and undergraduate researchers. Dedicated staff support, shared-access management, integration into coursework, and public outreach activities will ensure broad use and sustained regional and national impact. This project aligns with the NSF priorities of advanced manufacturing and biotechnology. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.