The BIST Symposium on Microscopy, Nanoscopy and Imaging Sciences took place at ICFO on 20 March, bringing together international speakers working at the forefront of imaging techniques across scales. Students from the Master of Multidisciplinary Research in Experimental Sciences also presented their projects during a poster session held as part of the symposium.
The 2026 BIST Symposium on Microscopy, Nanoscopy and Imaging Sciences, led since its first edition in 2018 by ICREA research professors Jordi Arbiol (ICN2) and Maria García-Parajo (ICFO), took place on 20 March at the premises of ICFO in Castelldefels (Barcelona). The Symposium is an open event for the scientific community showcasing international speakers working with the most advanced imaging techniques for both matherials and biological samples.
The programme was structured in two complementary sessions reflecting the breadth of modern imaging sciences. The morning session, organised by Jordi Arbiol, brought together talks focused on advanced techniques for the study of materials, including electron microscopy and scanning probe methods capable of probing matter at the nanoscale and even at the level of individual atoms.
The afternoon session, curated by Maria García-Parajo, turned to biological questions, highlighting optical microscopy approaches that enable the observation of complex and dynamic processes in living systems with high spatial and temporal resolution.
MMRES Winter School on Microscopy, Nanoscopy and Imaging Sciences
The Symposium also marked the conclusion of the Winter School on Microscopy, Nanoscopy and Imaging Sciences, part of the training programme of the Master of Multidisciplinary Research in Experimental Sciences (MMRES). During the Winter School, students gain first-hand experience of advanced imaging techniques, including super-resolution microscopy, through visits to the facilities of BIST community research centres and other specialised infrastructures.
“I really enjoyed getting to know the top electron microscopes that are hosted at the ALBA Synchroton“, said MMRES student Bruno Ivan Salgado Molina, referring to the visit to the Joint Electron Microscopy Center at ALBA (JEMCA).
MMRES students actively participated in the symposium, introducing the speakers and presenting their research projects through a poster session.
This year’s Symposium was also particularly special, as one of the speakers, Dr. Marc Botifoll—currently a postdoctoral researcher at the Ernst Ruska-Centre for Microscopy and Spectroscopy with Electrons (ER-C) in Germany—was an MMRES alumnus from the 2018-2019 cohort.
The 24 current MMRES students presented their major research projects in a poster session, where their work was evaluated by a panel of researchers. Prizes were awarded to the two highest-scoring posters, as well as to the poster selected by audience vote. The awarded students were:
- Ariadna Garrido, carrying out her research project in the lab of Michael Krieg at ICFO (first prize)
- Eloi Muñoz, conducting his research in the lab of Giuseppe Battaglia at IBEC (second prize)
- Alba Piñeiro, developing her research project in the lab of Oriol Gallego at MELIS-UPF (audience award)
