Tiny Worlds Revealed: AIBN Image Contest Showcases Science at the Nanoscale

To explore the nanoscale is to peer into a tiny world, a place where science and the unseen come alive.

Almost 40 AIBN Scientists submitted entries to the 2025 AIBN image contest, highlighting the role imagination and creativity play in scientific research.

Luckily, zooming in is what researchers at the AIBN do best. And they love to show off the things they find.

Each year during National Science Week AIBN researchers compete to see who can take the best photo using the powerful imaging technology found throughout the institute.

Once again, this year’s winners have shown that some of the most impressive sights in science often start out as specks on a glass plate.

The judges’ pick for the 2025 AIBN Image Contest was taken by Shiva Muthuswamy – an osteocyte suspended in a 3D biomimetic hydrogel system.

Shiva said ten to fifteen minutes under a confocal microscope was all he needed to capture this most abundant type of bone cell.

“My research aim is to deepen our understanding of osteocyte’s mechanobiology,” Shiva said.

“If we can learn more about these cells, we can learn more about the decline in bone density we experience as we age, and how we might prevent that.”

In second place for this year’s image competition was Dr Nyoman Kurniawan, who used diffusion MRI tractography to demonstrate the fibrous structures that supply nutrients throughout a Burdekin plum.

Finally, taking home the people’s choice prize in 2025 was Silvia Chowdhury, whose use of the scanning electron microscope on this metal organic framework attracted the most votes from friends and colleagues.

See below for all the shortlisted entries for this year or check out our gallery on LinkedIn.