IBH 5000U time-resolved fluorescence system

The 5000U is a high performance, general purpose fluorescence lifetime system featuring compact modular construction, single-photon timing sensitivity, research flexibility and Windows™ software for enhanced ease of use. The 5000U can accurately resolve lifetimes shorter than 100ps. Time-resolved spectroscopy capabilities are included as standard.

The 5000U is compatible with the widest range of interchangeable excitation sources including...

The 5000F coaxial nanosecond flashlamp
The 5000F is the ideal source for UV-visible excitation in TCSPC mode and is the default option
The NanoLED range of short pulsed diodes
Our award-winning range of LEDs and picosecond laser diodes with wavelengths from 372nm
The SpectraLED range of long pulsed diodes
For spectral and phosphorescence excitation from 372nm
The 5000XeF xenon flashlamp
For spectral and phosphorescence excitation from UV-NIR
External laser systems using our 5000U-07A laser input optics
e.g. Ti-sapphire lasers in TCSPC mode for multiphoton excitation and nitrogen or YAG lasers in MCS mode for lanthanide and phosphorescence excitation

All sources are easily interchangeable and can be ordered in addition to, or in place of, the 5000F to suit your particular applications. Pulsed diode controllers supplied with the 5000U are interfaced to the Measurement and Analysis Studio (see software section below) and software control allows NanoLED and SpectraLED settings to be stored with the general instrument configuration.

All Jobin Yvon IBH pulsed excitation sources feature gold-plated metal housings to ensure excellent electromagnetic (RF) suppression.

The 5000U's optical system is designed for high sensitivity using large diameter Spectrosil-B lenses. Vertical dispersion is used to maximise overlap of the excitation and detection volumes within the cuvette permitting the use of smaller sample volumes.

A beam-steering mirror couples the flashlamp on to the excitation monochromator allowing the beam path to be routinely optimised. Wavelength selection is made using Model 5000M low time dispersion f/3 excitation and emission monochromators. These monochromators have a spectral range of 200nm to 800nm and externally adjustable slits of bandwidth 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12, 16 and 32nm interspaced with blank positions. For convenience the entrance and exit slits are controlled using a single knob. The gratings used are concave holographic sinusoidal gratings selected for low scatter and high efficiency. The monochromators are fitted with stepper motors for computer control of wavelength, and safety shutters activated by the sample chamber lid to protect the single-photon photomultiplier.

X-Y-Z sample positioning is included as standard. A tilted front-face sample holder is shown in place of standard sample holder.

The large sample chamber shown below (ca. 25cm cube) has a generous top aperture for easy sample access and is compatible with Oxford Instruments cryostats. The sample chamber contains a cuvette holder with x-y-z position adjustment suitable for the standard 90° viewing geometry. A facility for recirculating liquid around the sample holder is included for temperature regulation. 2 inch diameter lenses are provided for focusing excitation and fluorescence, and these are motorised for convenience. Vertical lens adjustment is provided inside the sample chamber to optimise sensitivity. The lens material is Spectrosil-B for superior UV transmission and low intrinsic fluorescence. Mounts for polarisers and/or optical filters (e.g. Schott glass filters) are included in the excitation and emission channels. There are 3 spare access ports and 6 spare feed through glands for additional cabling and piping.

The large 25cm-cube sample chamber allows easy sample access with plenty of room for cryostats and future expansion.

The system control electronics include stepper motor drivers, protection shutter switches and computer interfaces. A laser interlock output is also included.

The 5000U's standard detector is the TBX-04 picosecond single-photon detection module. The TBX-04 features a spectral response of 185nm to 650nm, a dark count rate of <80cps (<20cps typical) and a timing jitter of 200ps or better (<180ps typical). Extended red and cooled extended red versions are also available. Alternative detectors (e.g. MCP-PMTs) can be supplied on request, and these are interchangeable.

The TBX-04 is a fully integrated module incorporating photomultiplier, high voltage power supply, GHz preamplifier, and picosecond-timing discriminator. The detector and support electronics are housed in an all-metal gold-plated housing and no user adjustment is required.

Whether you choose the TBX-04 or MCP-PMT, Jobin Yvon IBH is the only manufacturer to close-couple the detector, preamplifier, and discriminator to minimise the likelihood of data corruption due to correlated noise. This is just one example of the attention to detail that sets IBH systems apart from the rest.

The 5000U's timing electronics are fully computer controlled and supported by the IBH Fluorescence Measurement and Analysis Studio software (FMAS). FMAS comprises three 32-bit Windows™ component applications described below. Data is stored in an OLE2 compliant file format allowing seamless sharing of data between the MAS components.

DataStation

DataStation provides the interface to the instrument and is used during measurement set-up and data acquisition. Data measured using DataStation is subsequently analysed using DAS6.

DataStation features a number of measurements profiles that quickly configure the 5000U for various popular measurements including anisotropy, time-resolved emission spectra (TRES), temperature scans, steady-state spectra and phosphorescence[1]

DAS6

DAS6 is the 6th generation decay analysis software suite featuring reconvolution, shift iteration, an advanced user interface, and IBH’s proprietary Hybrid Grid Search Algorithm (HGSA) for stable chi-squared minimisation.

The data acquisition hardware supplied with the 5000U is based on the DataStation Hub, the most complete PC-based solution available for time-domain fluorescence spectroscopy. Three primary measurement modes are supported:

Picosecond to millisecond TCSPC (time-correlated single-photon counting) for measuring fast fluorescence decays.
Microsecond to hours MCS (multi-channel scaling) for measuring longer transients such as phosphorescence decays.
Gated single-photon counting for measuring absolute count rates (six channels). These are used for monitoring the activity of the 5000U and also during steady-state scans.

Four expansion ports (three parallel and one serial) are included on the Hub for future expansion and upgrade options. The FMAS software and DataStation Hub is supplied pre-installed on a PC (HP Vectra or equivalent) with a Windows 98 SE operating system (alternative operating systems available on request). To minimise freight charges a monitor is not included unless requested.