BTN Protocol Guide-08

| Microscopy
Carl Zeiss MicroImaging GmbH
Microscopy and Imaging
P.O.B. 4041,
37030 Göttingen, Germany
Phone:+49 5515060 660
Fax:+49 5515060 464
E-mail: micro@zeiss.de
www.zeiss.de/Colibri
Colibri – LED Technology for Fluorescence Microscopy
With Colibri, Carl Zeiss MicroImaging GmbH is introducing an compared to arc lamps, which emit light across the entire spectral
innovative light source that will bring the numerous advantages range, proves on closer inspection to be beneﬁ cial: it is only the
of LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) into the ﬂ uorescence microscopy wavelength range that coincides with the absorption spectrum
domain. of a ﬂ uorescent dye that contributes to the excitation of that dye.
All other wavelengths have to be suppressed as fully as possible;
LED technology has developed rapidly over recent years in terms otherwise they will superimpose the ﬂ uorescence signal.
not only of available wavelengths but also of emission performance,
so that LEDs have come to be used in a wide range of applications. Modern ﬂ uorescence ﬁ lters achieve excellent suppression of
Their compact design, low power consumption, minimal heat output, unneeded wavelengths, but they do not suppress them completely.
fast switching and adjusting properties, high emission stability and And every undesirable photon that ﬁ nds its way to the detector adds
extremely long life span are all features that make the use of LEDs to the image background, causing deterioration in the signal-to-
very attractive—not least for ﬂ uorescence microscopy. It is precisely noise ratio.
these characteristics that conventional arc lamps, such as HBO, XBO
or metal halide lack to varying degrees. LEDs, on the other hand, always emit only one particular wavelength
range. Outside this range, they shed no light whatsoever that could
It used to be virtually impossible to use LEDs in ﬂ uorescence increase the image background. The result is extremely high-
microscopy because of their low emissions. However, the high- contrast ﬂ uorescence images with a high dynamic range that enable
performance LEDs available today have overcome this hurdle. And the detection of the weakest of signals and the ﬁ nest of structures.
their performance is continuing to increase, by some 20% per year
on average.
Colibri’s extremely modular design ensures that it will be easy to
implement and exploit further developments in LED technology in
the future as well.
Ten different LED modules are already available for Colibri, from UV
to dark red.
Every individual LED module emits only a precisely deﬁ ned spectral
range. What at ﬁ rst glance might seem to be a disadvantage
Protocol Guide ı 2008 View entire protocol online at www.biotechniques.com/protocol ı BioTechniques ı 53
CarlZeiss Protocol.indd 53 10/26/07 11:52:20 AM
Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3 | Page 4 | Page 5 | Page 6 | Page 7 | Page 8 | Page 9 | Page 10 | Page 11 | Page 12 | Page 13 | Page 14 | Page 15 | Page 16 | Page 17 | Page 18 | Page 19 | Page 20 | Page 21 | Page 22 | Page 23 | Page 24 | Page 25 | Page 26 | Page 27 | Page 28 | Page 29 | Page 30 | Page 31 | Page 32 | Page 33 | Page 34 | Page 35 | Page 36 | Page 37 | Page 38 | Page 39 | Page 40 | Page 41 | Page 42 | Page 43 | Page 44 | Page 45 | Page 46 | Page 47 | Page 48 | Page 49 | Page 50 | Page 51 | Page 52 | Page 53 | Page 54 | Page 55 | Page 56 | Page 57 | Page 58 | Page 59 | Page 60 | Page 61 | Page 62 | Page 63 | Page 64 | Page 65 | Page 66 | Page 67 | Page 68 | Page 69 | Page 70 | Page 71 | Page 72 | Page 73 | Page 74 | Page 75 | Page 76