Equipment Types The ISN groups its equipment broadly into four types: Analysis Equipment, Microscopy Equipment, Sample Preparation Equipment, and Project-Specific Equipment. A list of equipment within each type is available through the links below. Analysis Equipment Tools for the analysis of the physical, electrical, and other properties of materials and material systems Microscopy Equipment Tools for the visual inspection of materials and material systems. Sample Preparation Equipment Tools used to prepare samples for analysis. Project-Specific Equipment Tools used solely in connection to specific ISN projects. These tools are not available for general use.