This is a modular unit, which, despite being many years old and lacking automation or thermostatisation, stands out for its top quality optics. The model has a powerful 450W Xenon lamp as polychromatic source and a double excitation monochromator and a single emission monochromator together with a four-position sample compartment. With this equipment it is possible to measure steady-state fluorescence, collect excitation and emission spectra and determine quantum yields. In addition, it includes Glan-Thompson-type excitation and emission polarisers that allow fluorescence anisotropy measurements.

The applications of steady-state fluorescence are manifold, both in basic and applied science, in fields as diverse as biology, chemistry, biotechnology, nanotechnology, pharmacy, materials science, food and the environment. These techniques allow the study and characterisation of materials or biological systems at the molecular and cellular level, being able to measure distances at the nanometric scale, as well as dynamic processes that occur in the nanosecond range.

Also, thanks to the development of increasingly advanced fluorescent probes and markers, it is possible to measure molecular interactions or characterise structures of biological macromolecules such as DNA or proteins, or more complex and heterogeneous structures such as biological membranes. Fluorescence is also very useful as an analytical tool, especially in the field of sensors and biosensors, due to its great versatility and sensitivity.

Contact: Marta Rubio Camacho (e-mail:   phone:+34 965 222 479).