Fluorescence Microscopes

FluoMic

Compact Upright Widefield Photoluminescence Microscope

  • Widefield time-resolved photoluminescence microscope
  • Based on time-correlated single photon counting (TCSPC)
  • Lifetime detection range from a few ps to several ms with ps timing resolution
  • Selectable excitation wavelengths from 375 to 1060 nm
  • Detection range from 400 to 1700 nm
  • Easy data acquisition and powerful analysis with EasyTau 2 and SymPhoTime 64 software
Image FluoMic Compact Upright Widefield Photoluminescence Microscope

LED spectra and photoluminescence decays In many cases, characterizing materials such as semiconductors or solar cells requires measuring their photophysical properties at various points with spatial resolution. Depending on the sample, scanning over a large sample area is often interesting, besides measurements at various points. The FluoMic provides a fast, easy, and reliable way to measure steady-state (from UV to NIR) and time-resolved (from ps to ms) luminescence with a spatial resolution down to 2 μm.

Thanks to its pre-aligned optical fibers, pulsed and CW laser light sources can be used to excite a sample under the microscope. In combination with the FlexWave Wavelength Selection Unit and the SymPhoTime 64 software, steady-state photoluminescence spectra as well as wavelength-selected decays and even time-resolved emission spectra (TRES) can be measured from a small area with FluoMic.

It is available with various microscope stands (e.g., the Olympus BX43, BX53(-P), BX63 and even BXFM) and by this provides a high flexibility for samples and measurement conditions.

Scientific guidance and user training

PicoQuant annually holds the European short course on "Time-resolved Microscopy and Correlation Spectroscopy". The course is intended for individuals wishing an in-depth introduction to the principles of time-resolved fluorescence microscopy and its applications to the Life Sciences. This 3-day event consists of lectures as well as instrumentation and software hands-on training.


Microscope stands a)
Olympus BX43 BX53-P BX63 BXFM
Type Upright, manual Upright, manual Upright, automated Upright, manual
Illumination Transmission, 
Side-on
Epi-Fluorescence		 Transmission, 
Polarization
Epi-Fluorescence		 Transmission, 
Epi-Fluorescence		 Epi-Fluorescence
Camera a) CMOS, 1280x1060 Pixel, vis-NIR CMOS, 1280x1060 Pixel, vis-NIR CMOS, 1280x1060 Pixel, vis-NIR CMOS, 1280x1060 Pixel, vis-NIR
Dimensions (base unit) (w × d × h) b)  400 x 600 x 600 mm  400 x 600 x 600 mm  400 x 600 x 600 mm  400 x 600 x 600 mm
Weight (base unit) b) 15 kg 20 kg 25 kg 20 kg

Olympus Objectives a)
Magnification 10x 20x 40x 100x
Numeric aperture 0,40 0,40 0,65 0,90
Working distance 3.1 mm 1.2 mm 0.6 mm 1.0 mm
Spot size (excitation)  120 µm  60 µm  30 µm  12 µm
Spot size (emission)   20 µm 10 µm   5 µm   2 µm

Excitation sources
Light source Laser Diode Heads (LDH Series) ps Laser Module (Prima/Unico)
Wavelength range  375 – 1060 nm 405, 450, 488, 515, 640 nm
Pulse width range < 40 – 200 ps, 6000 ps for MB lasers < 80 – 200 ps
Repetition rate 1 Hz – 100 MHz 1 kHz – 200 MHz
Operation modes Pulsed, CW, and burst mode  Pulsed, CW, and fast switched CW mode

Detectors a)
PMT based PMA-C 175 PMA-C 192 NIR-PMT 1400
Spectral range 230 – 700 nm 230 – 920 nm 900 – 1400 nm
Dark counts (at 20°C) < 50 cps < 1100 cps < 10 000 cps
TTS (FWHM) < 180 ps < 180 ps < 370 ps
Recom. max. count rate < 5.0 MHz < 5.0 MHz < 1.5 MHz
PMA Hybrid PMA Hybrid-07 PMA Hybrid-40 PMA Hybrid-50
Spectral range 220 – 850 nm 300 – 720 nm < 370 – 920 nm
Dark counts (at 20°C) < 150 cps < 150 cps < 600 cps
TTS (FWHM) < 50 ps < 120 ps < 160 ps
Recom. max. count rate < 80 MHz d)
SPAD based MPD Excelitas InGaAs MPD
Spectral range < 400 – 1000 nm  < 400 – 1060 nm  < 850 – 1700 nm 
Dark counts (at 20°C) < 100 cps < 100 cps < 400 cps
TTS (FWHM) < 50 ps (typ. < 35 ps) < 250 ps (typ.) < 50 ps (typ. < 35 ps)
Recom. max. count rate < 10 MHz < 35 MHz < 10 MHz

TCSPC electronics
TCSPC device PicoHarp 330 MultiHarp 150 4P MultiHarp 150 4N TimeHarp 260 Pico
Number of channels 1 + 4 e) 1 + 4 1 + 4 1 + 2
Min. bin width 1 ps 5 ps 80 ps 25 ps / 2.50 ns (MCS)
Max. number of time bins 65 536 65 536 65 536 32 768
Full scale time range  65 536 ps - 550 ms  327 ns – 2.74 s  5.24 µs – 22.00 s 819 ns - 170 s (MCS)
Interface USB 3.0 USB 3.0 USB 3.0 PCIe 2.0 x1

Scanning (optional)
Scanner Widerange scanner Widerange scanner Objective scanner
Type XY Piezo widerange XY Piezo widerange XYZ Piezo objective
Range 75 x 75 mm 25 x 25 mm 80 x 80 x 80 µm
Min. step size 100 nm   75 nm  1 nm
Positioning accuracy  600 nm  300 nm  10 nm

Coupling (optional)
Type FlexWave FluoTime 250 FluoTime 300

Operation conditions 
PC requirements Quad-core CPU > 3 GHz, RAM >= 4 GB
Operation system Windows™ 10/11
Power requirements 220/240 or 110/120 VAC, 50/60 Hz
Table BX43: regular BX53: regular BX63: regular BXFM: opt. Breadboard
Housing available on request

a) others on request
b) without breadboard and housing
c) values provided by Hamamatsu
d) with CW excitation
e) upgradable


All Information given here is reliable to our best knowledge. However, no responsibility is assumed for possible inaccuracies or omissions. Specifications and external appearances are subject to change without notice.

Add-on: FlexWave Wavelength Selection Unit for Widefield Microscopes

Feature highlights:

  • Spectral scanning with > 80 % transmission from 400 to 1000 nm for highest sensitivity
  • High temporal resolution without pulse broadening by an optical diffraction grating

Suitable for various applications:

Detailed specifications are included in the datasheet.

Specifications:

  • Spectral range: 400 - 1000 nm
  • Transmission: > 80 % over the whole spectral range
  • Bandwidth min.: 1 nm
  • Bandwidth max.: 80 nm
  • Step width min: 0.1 nm
  • Detection: single detector directly mounted or fiber-coupled multi-channel detection unit
  • Detector types: PMA Hybrid series or SPADs
  • Software: SymPhoTime 64

FlexWave analysis spectrum


Applications

  Studying minerals and crystals

Studying minerals and crystals

image analyzing polymers and composites

Analyzing polymers and composites



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