Dresden 2009 – scientific programme

Parts | Days | Selection | Search | Downloads | Help

BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 7: Poster I

BP 7.41: Poster

Monday, March 23, 2009, 17:45–20:00, P3

Design of a low-cost modular FCS, FRAP and Optical Tweezers setup for educational use — •Thorsten Bloem, Nadine Lang, Philip Kollmannsberger, and Ben Fabry — Biophysics, University of Erlangen, Germany

We demonstrate a flexible yet inexpensive optical setup for undergraduate education which alternately provides Fluorescence Correlation Sprectroscopy (FCS), Fluorescence Recovery after Photobleaching (FRAP) as well as Optical Tweezers (OT) reusing the same components. It is built around a 100x objective with 1,25 NA, two diode lasers (532 nm and 1064 nm) for fluorescence and trapping, a CCD camera and an avalanche photodiode (APD) as detectors, as well as standard optomechanics mounted on a 60x60 cm breadboard. The total price of less than 8 000,- EUR for the basic configuration makes modern imaging and manipulation techniques accessible for undergraduate institutions at a fraction of the cost of high-end research systems. Teaching modules for advanced lab courses are presented to demonstrate the use as an educational platform for modern optics, biological imaging and biophysics.