Leica SP5 confocal manual

Power up

1. Fluorescence source
2. Laser power and keyswitch
3. Scanner power
4. PC microscope switch
5. Login to Homer network

• If you want to use the resonant scanner (for live cell imaging) check the box, otherwise make sure it is not checked
  (no need to click on microscope or configuration)
• It asks if you want to initialize the stage - This is not necessary unless you want to do tiled scans, so click no.

• It is easiest to change objectives using the software

• Coarse/precise switches for xy control and focus
• Transmitted light - Top button behind leftside focus control
• Buttons for changing cubes (DAPI, green or red) and opening/closing the fluorescence shutter at front

• Load/save single setting - choose the combination of colours you have in your sample
• You can adjust the laser power and exact range of wavelengths collected for each PMT

• Adjust z-position (=focus), pinhole, zoom
• Adjust gain and offset for each channel (click the image to select)
  Choose glow scale (green=under, blue=over) for more accurate adjustments

Adjust the line averaging number (marked with red arrow above). You need to empirally determine what is best fro your sample but 2-8 are common values.

The number of pixels can be changed from the starting value of 512*512 under "Format".

Press Capture for final image, the image window has these buttons (the stack ones are only present if you have a series).

Z-stack acqusition

Set everything up as above for the brightest region of the stack. Then specify the top and bottom of the stack and the number of slices . . .

Press "start" to campture the z-series. It will do whatever averaging you have set for each slice.

Sequential acquisition

This is worth doing when you have bleedthrough between channels (most common with DAPI and green).

Press the "seq" button, which opens the sequential scan box. Click the plus to generate how many scans you need For scan1 set all laser powers to zero except for one laser line, deactivate all but the relevant PMT Scan2, set up the next laser and PMT . . . Press the "seq" button again to exit sequential mode.

Saving data:

Click the "Experiments" sub-tab

• Right click on each to get various options (rename as you go is recommended)
• Images are stored in leica format (.lif), can export to Tiff (right click on the .lif file to export all at once)
• If you are using USB memory it is more stable to save to the D:/ drive and then move the data afterwards
• Press Save All fairly regularly in case of crashes

1. AR laser to 0%, turn off any laser that won't be used by the next person (check the booking calendar comments)
2. Log off

1. Ar to minimum and all lasers off (ie uncheck the boxes in config/laser)
2. Shut down the computer from the start menu
3. Wait for the Ar laser cooling fan to turn off (if you used it)
4. PC/Microscope switch
5. Scanner power
6. laser power and key
7. Fluorescence source
   

If you used the incubator and it is appropriate to turn it off (ie you are the last person, or the next person doesn't want to use it), you can turn off the cube on the shelf and the red CO2 regulator at any point.