Preface to StSPM2019EV special issue

For the first year, the Journal of Microscopy publishes a special ‘StSPM2019EV’ issue with selected contributions invited at the 3rd workshop Science through Scanning Probe Microscopy 2019 – Extended Version (StSPM19EV). The Italian Society for Microscopical Sciences (SISM) organised this event, in collaboration with the Institute for the Study of Nanostructured Materials (ISMN) of the CNR and the Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences (BiGeA) of the University of Bologna. Every 3 years, the event meets up Italian scientists working with Scanning Probe Microscopy. This year StSPM is joined to the workshop ‘Scanning probe microscopy and spectroscopy for mineral, biological and material sciences’, organised by Prof. Giovanni Valdrè of BiGeA every 2 years, becoming StSPM19EV. The workshop aimed to illustrate the scientific progresses achieved in Italy thanks to SPM techniques. The scientific program reported alternate sessions on ‘Materials Science’ and ‘Life Science’, highlighting how SPM contributes to such branches. This Extended Version included two didactic lectures for degree/PhD students, accordingly to the educational approach of the ‘Scanning probe microscopy and spectroscopy for mineral, biological and material sciences’ workshop.