Motorized Microscope Stage Driven by Ceramic Motors

PI’s new M-687 motorized microscope XY stage for inverted microscopes is more compact and stable than traditional computer controllable microscope stages, due to its fully integrated, miniaturized ceramic linear drives. The M-687 is delivered as a complete system including a controller, joystick and software.

The self-clamping ceramic/ceramic linear motors in the M-687 XY positioner are not only more compact than electromagnetic motors, but also provide significantly higher positional stability for the following reasons: once in place, no energy is consumed to hold position (no heat dissipation); no leadscrews that heat up due to friction during motion and cause drift cooling down once the motion stops; no creep caused by lubricant flow in the drive mechanism. The exceptional stability is a great advantage in long term imaging applications.

In addition to the high-precision motors, integrated, 100 nm resolution linear encoders provide direct position feedback to the controller allowing closed-loop operation with high accuracy.

Options: Holders, Piezo-Z stages.
A variety of accessories such as slides holders, petri dish holders, multi-well plate holders is available, as well as high-speed Piezo-Z nanopositioning stages for 3D microscopy, image stack acquisition, or fast auto-focus. PI also provides XYZ piezo nanopositioning flexure stages for Super-Resolution (SR) microscopy.

Features & Advantages
* Low-profile motorized microscope XY stage with large aperture
* Versions for Olympus IX2 and Nikon Eclipse Ti inverted microscopes
* Self-clamping ceramic drive for higher stability
* Highly constant velocity even at low speeds to 10 microns/sec
* Long travel range up to 135x85 mm
* Ideal for long exposure imaging, image stitching, etc.
* High speed up to 120 mm/second
* High precision, 100 nanometer resolution linear encoders
* For inverted microscopes design allows for free rotation of the turret
* Available Piezo-Z Scanner for 3D microscopy / fast auto-focus.
* Accessories: Slides holders, petri dish holder, multi-well plate holders.