Introducing the laser phase plate! A tiny device with a big impact, the laser phase plate makes it possible to see the faint details inside cells that current tools can’t reach. These details may hold the key to understanding how diseases start and how to stop them. The concept was originally proposed by UCBerkeleyOfficial physicists Holger Müller and Robert Glaeser more than 15 years ago. People thought it would be impossible to build. In part because the mirrors require such perfect polishing, there’s only one team in the world that can do it. But today it is a reality, ushering in a new era for high resolution imaging. [Animation credit: Alexandre Dizeux] #microscopy #biology #cryoEM #imaging #science