The School of Physics and Astronomy plays host to the (cryo) Focused Ion Beam – Scanning Electron Microscope (FIB-SEM) small research facility. The microscope can perform a large range of techniques for sample preparation, nanofabrication or as an imaging technique for high resolution 3D structural characterization of materials. In this talk, I will discuss the basics of SEM and FIB, the techniques available using the microscope and how it could be used in your research, and highlight some of the work being done by researchers across the University of Edinburgh, including from CSEC, on hard materials.