The biological research programme of the nuclear microprobe at the National Accelerator Centre, Faure

Abstract The nuclear microprobe (NMP) unit of the National Accelerator Centre (NAC) has initiated a focused research programme on studies of biological material, ranging from applications in medicine to agriculture and botany. During this period a state-of-the-art cryo-preparation laboratory was also developed. This research programme has resulted in a wide range of projects, and has shown how well suited the NMP is for studies of biological material in general. This paper reports on some of the problems and demands in this field, as well as some of the results obtained using particle induced X-ray spectroscopy (PIXE) and Rutherford backscattering (RBS). True elemental imaging is routinely performed using the dynamic analysis (DA) method, which forms part of the GeoPIXE suite of programmes. A collaborative project, together with the CENBG group of Bordeaux–Gradignan in France, on the development of a facility with the aim of studying effects of single-events of radiation in living cells was recently established and is discussed.