Because we are living in a material world – Material Science

FAQ Video 38

MINFLUX allows an everyday 3D resolution of 2 – 3 nm and offers about 100 times faster tracking than with a camera-based system.

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FAQ Video 14

“How come that abberior STED microscopes deliver the highest resolution?”

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FAQ Video 10

“Isn’t it super difficult to operate a MINFLUX microscope?”

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FAQ Video 05

“Why is MINFLUX such a breakthrough, II ?”

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Materials science aims to investigate the structure and properties of materials, to improve them, and to develop new materials. For a long time, electron microscopy and near-field microscopy were mainly used for this purpose. Nowadays, 2D and 3D superresolution light microscopy techniques such as STED and MINFLUX are used more and more. They offer the great advantage that a resolution beyond the diffraction limit of light can be achieved without having to prepare or section the samples, which often changes their properties. STED and MINFLUX can also be applied to collect information on the dynamic behavior of materials. Examples for the use of superresolution microscopy in materials science range from polymers and nanofibers to inorganic substances and carbon materials.

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Making structures light up

Colorful image of nanoparticles or beads stained with abberior dyes

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A matter of detail

abberior offers high-performance STED systems with superior optics that provide a resolution of down to 20 nm in 2D and 75 nm in 3D. And we are the only manufacturer of MINFLUX, the light microscope with single-digit nanometer resolution and a tracking speed of up to 10 kHz. Our product portfolio is completed by a comprehensive selection of fluorescent dyes and labels suitable for various applications.

MINFLUX – unrivaled resolution and speed

iMSPECTOR for MINFLUX software

The MINFLUX platform offers an unprecedented array of imaging possibilities and allows you to resolve structures as small as a molecule, along all three dimensions. This unmatched resolution capability combined with unprecedented speed reveals sample details never seen before and helps to dissect fast and dynamic processes in space and time. MINFLUX is the world’s most powerful fluorescence microscope. Details >

INFINITY – forever cutting edge

iMSPECTOR for INFINITY software

The INFINITY platform is the most customizable platform for all things microscopy and may be adapted to your particular demands to investigate materials. INFINITY is always up to the challenge. Just tell us what you need and we will build you a customized, continuously upgradable system specialized for your research. Details >

FACILITY – when every detail matters

LiGHTBOX for FACILITY software

Our FACILITY platform offers you a workhorse instrument that boasts top-of-the-line superresolution STED and confocal imaging. It combines cutting-edge microscopy with unprecedented ease-of-use. Our LiGHTBOX software allows beginners to intuitively arrive at a top-notch image within three clicks, while also giving experts full control over the instrument. Details >

Cutting-edge tools

to change the game

Choose a superpower for your experiment – our modules

We offer many modules to overcome the specific imaging challenges in your research. RAINBOW detection allows you to collect both, maximum signal and extend spectral flexibility. RAYSHAPE corrects for aberrations and facilitates imaging deep into the specimen. Then there are Autofocus and Autoalignment, which ensure that your beams and focal spot are always in best shape. Our modules can do all of this and even more! And if you can’t find what you need on our website, get in touch with us, and we’ll develop it for you.

Background-free MATRIX STED image of actin in microvilli of Caco2 cells

MATRIX Detector

Many eyes see more than one. The MATRIX detector drastically improves signal-to-background ratio, resolution, and dynamic range.

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TIMEBOW Imaging

TIMEBOW lifetime imaging for stunning results at confocal and STED super-resolution.

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Neurons stained for spectrin and adducine

FLEXPOSURE Illumination

Brings down the light dose on your sample and lables dramatically. Key ingredient for volume and live-cell superresolution.

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xz section of a stage 17 Drosophila embryo, stained for chitin and DNA

RAYSHAPE Mirror

Dynamic aberration correction with a deformable mirror over about 200 µm z-range. 140 digital actuators adjust the mirror surface within milliseconds.

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Axial STED image of actin in mouse inner ear hair cells

EASY3D

3D-STED and aberration control, the easy way

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Three-color STED image of microtubules, myosin and actin in the growth cone of a neuron's axon

RAINBOW Detection

Continuously variable spectral detection.

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STED Lasers

All-pulsed STED lasers for maximum resolution and minimal bleaching.

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Autoalignment

Every beam in order, including pinhole and STED-shape

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Autofocus

Continuous focus-lock, even with STED

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Excitation Lasers

Pulsed excitation lasers for virtually every wavelength.

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Accessories

Things to make your life easier

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Custom upright 3D STED microscope by abberior

Custom Solutions

We offer solutions for even the most challenging applications. Everything that can be done, we will do.

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Broaden your knowledge

of microscopes, dyes, and superresolution

How the donut changed the world

Nobel laureate Stefan W. Hell shows a donut, the symbol for his groundbreaking idea of a donut-shaped laser beam.

For over a century, we stood at the edge of microscope resolution and cursed the inexorable blur of diffracted light. Instruments improved, but the fog never lifted. Then, one man stopped trying to control how light behaves. Armed with a donut-shaped laser beam, he instead commanded where it shines and untethered resolution forever. Details >

PALM and STORM are often used as synonyms, and in fact they have a lot in common. But there are slight differences that can be important for your application. And then there are other superresolution techniques, too – like STED and MINFLUX. Details >

For all the talk about criteria and definitions, measuring the resolution of a microscope is more nuanced than you’d think. The scales at which microscopes operate today are subject to noise and background that obscure and distort signals. What you use for the measurement can make a big difference. The second article in our “Resolution” series. Details >

Are you surprised that the very nature of light caps the resolution that we can achieve in microscope images? Luckily, there are workarounds to this limit. These workarounds push the amount of detail in an image by manipulating precisely where and when fluorophores are allowed to emit. As such, they provide us with a completely new set of tools to shrink the distance between two points while still being able to resolve them. Details >

Additional information and articles

MINFLUX webinar – Tracking with unprecedented spatio-temporal resolution!

Thanks MINFLUX it’s possible to track the movement of individual molecules in the cell, e.g. kinesin. See what EMBL scientists have achieved.

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Chemist in the lab

FAQ Dyes & Labels

Everything you always wanted to know about dyes and labeling

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STEDYCON: hassle-free operation combined with finest technology

Microscope Systems

Fluorescence microscopy is an indispensable tool and for your science, you need the finest technology combined with hassle-free operation from abberior.

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Stefan Hell and the world's most powerful fluorescence microscope MINFLUX

MINFLUX

The world’s most powerful fluorescence microscope MINFLUX, based on Stefan Hell’s invention, allows to resolve structures as small as a molecule in 3D.

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