Simple Methods to Correlate Light and Scanning Electron Microscopy

Based on technologies capable of data collection between the millimeter and nanometer scales, correlative imaging has been transforming how researchers obtain molecular and spatial information from specimens. Attempts to combine multidimensional data are often met with the challenge of overcoming suboptimal sample conditions such as reduced fluorescence signal, poor specimen preservation, anisotropic specimen deformation, and low specimen contrast. These issues motivated the development and use of enhanced sample preparation procedures, as well as specialized imaging software to overcome such challenges. In this work we present three simple methods to correlate optical and scanning electron microscopy images.