In-vitro cell models have been used very successfully to investigate disease mechanisms and the efficacy and toxicity of drugs. They have the potential to eventually abolish the need for animal experiments. The investigation of complex biological processes in cell culture requires sophisticated measurement tools, and there is currently a lack of tools capable of providing quantitative chemical information on the surface-attached (basal) side of living cells. In this project, a novel instrument will be developed that can revolutionise our ability to understand ion fluxes and pH changes in living cells by quantitatively measuring the concentrations of ions, electrical cell-signals and the transport properties of living cells in the surface attachment area with nanoscale lateral resolution.