Scanning Electron Microscopy and amber

Kachin Amber is one of the best mediums for the fossilization of very delicate organisms. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) in backscattered electron mode (SEM-BSE)and low temperature SEM (LTSEM) enables us to view extreme details not revealed with other technologies. SEM in secondary electron mode (SEM-SE) also reveals a microbiota trapped in gas bubbles. The Birbal Sahni institute of paleosciences in Lucknow India pioneered the techniques of extracting inclusions for SEM analyis. Plant pollen was chosen as it provides a new and novel way of dating amber specimens by studying the pollens trapped in the amber. Solvents have been developed to test ambers and to dissolve ambers to expose delicate inclusions that are recovered during filtration, these delicate inclusions are then nanocoated to protect them from breaking during the SEM process. This technique has now been adopted by numerous institutes around the World many of them researching ambers donated by AAKZ.