The MIT Department of Materials Science and Engineering Breakerspace transformed into an art gallery on March 10, with six easels arranged in an arc to showcase arresting images - black-and-white scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of crumpled biological structures alongside the brilliant hues of digital optical microscopy.
The images were the winning entries from the inaugural Breakerspace Microscope Image Contest, which opened in fall 2024. The contest invited all MIT undergraduates to train on the Breakerspace's microscopic instruments, explore material samples, and capture images that were artistic, instructive, or technically challenging.
"The goal of the contest is to inspire curiosity and creativity, encouraging students to explore the imaging tools in the Breakerspace," says Professor Jeffrey Grossman of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering (DMSE). "We want students to see the beauty and complexity of materials at the microscopic level, to think critically about the images they capture, and to communicate what they mean to others."
Grossman was a driving force behind the Breakerspace, a laboratory and lounge designed to encourage MIT undergraduates to explore the world of materials.
The contest drew about 50 entries across four categories:
