Product Gallery

Print version | PDF version | Recommend product | RSS-Feed

Ultrafast Chemical 3-D Imaging: Raman Images by the Minute Highly Sensitive Option for the Confocal Raman Microscope WITec alpha300 R

With the Ultrafast Raman imaging option, WITec sets a new cutting edge standard in acquisition time and sensitivity for confocal Raman Imaging. With this option the acquisition time for a single Raman spectrum can be as low as 760 microseconds. For example, a complete hyperspectral image consisting of 250 x 250 pixels = 62,500 Raman spectra can be recorded in less than a minute providing the full spectral information at each image pixel. The latest spectroscopic EMCCD detector technology combined with the high throughput optics featured in the alpha300 R Confocal Raman Imaging System are the keys to this improvement. The new option reduces the overall experiment duration and delivers more valuable Raman data in a given time, thereby reducing the total cost of ownership of the system. The improvement in sensitivity can also be advantageous for delicate and precious samples requiring the lowest possible levels of excitation power. Time-resolved investigations of fast dynamic processes can also benefit from the ultrafast spectral acquisition times.

The new Ultrafast Raman Imaging method is available as an optional feature of the alpha300 R confocal Raman Microscope and the confocal Raman imaging upgrades of the alpha300 AFM and SNOM series. In Confocal Raman Imaging, a complete Raman spectrum is acquired at each image pixel. By evaluating dedicated peak characteristics, Raman images can be generated, revealing information on the distribution of the sample's compounds, stress fields or crystallinity. Typical applications for this nondestructive technique can be found in bio-medical and pharmaceutical research, in semiconductors and materials science as well as in nanotechnology.