P210/0SH/000 - Cuvette Measurement Subsystem
The Cairn cuvette measurement subsytem is designed for photodetection from standard 10 x 10mm cuvettes and can be configured for fluorescence, absorbance, or bioluminescence studies. As with all our products the emphasis is firmly on flexibility, with four equivalent coupling ports which can be configured for illumination or detection, allowing easy integration with other Cairn or third party equipment. Detection can be performed using our standard photomultiplier with its integrating amplifier or a dedicated photon counting head.
The assembly consists of an light tight outer shell, and a thermally insulated inner block with provision for electronic or perfusion based temperature control, for which an electronic control module for temperature control is available. Sample perfusion is achieved through a cap in the lid, which can be exchanged for a direct injection sysem using a pipette or syringe. The unit has an integrated magnetic stirrer with variable height control to allow for different sample volumes and adaptors for 6mm and 8mm round cuvettes are also available.
For Fluorescence and Absorbance measurements
The cuvette subsytem is fully compatible with Cairn photomultiplier housings and signal processing electronics, with the possibility of the photomultipliers and filter sliders being coupled directly to any of the four ports. There is an integral provision for a fixed 12.5mm emission filter at each port. One or more of the ports can be coupled to a liquid light guide to allow easy illumination of the cuvette.
For full fluorescence or absorbance detection systems we provide a multi-channel analogue data acquisition card, together with the complimentary acquisition module for our software system.
For Bioluminescence measurements
In the standard configuration one of the ports contains a close-coupled, low-noise photon counting head, with the remaining ports blanked off with mirrored caps to improve photon capture. These ports can be made available for fluorescence or absorbance measurements if required. In addition to the standard cuvette configuration there is a microswitch to switch off, and thus protect, the photon counting head in the event of the lid being removed.
To provide a complete photon counting system we offer a 32-bit counter card and a software module for the Cairn Acquisition Engine, allowing easy migration to photon counting from traditional photometry. For compatability with third-party counting systems the unit uses a generic 5V power supply and has a BNC output.
