Optical Cryostats for Microscopy

Andors Microstat range of optical cryostats provide cryogenic sample environments with a variety of design and performance characteristics. Available as liquid Nitrogen and liquid Helium flow cryostats with sample-in-vacuum environment and sample temperatures from <2.2K to 500K. The Microstat range offers some of the most efficient and cost-effective cryostats for Optical Microscopy. They are equally suited to work in any orientation on an optical bench or integrated into a commercially available microscope. We also offer a range of optical cryostats for spectroscopy.

Lowest cost of ownership - Helium Cost Calculator
Market leading low vibration and high stability options
Touch screen controller with unique expansion capabilities
User upgradeable window flanges and controller channels

Liquid Nitrogen & Helium Cryostat Solutions

MicrostatN

LN2 Flow Cryostat
20mm x 2mm sample space
Solids, Powder & Pellets
4 DC wires to sample
<10min cooldown
Low running cost

Specifications

MicrostatHe

Helium Flow Cryostat
20mm x 5mm sample space
Vacuum sample space
10 DC wires to sample
2.2K - 500K
<10 min cooldown

Specifications

MicrostatHiRes

Helium Flow Cryostat
20mm x 5mm low vibration sample space
Adjustable working distance working distance
2.7k - 500k
<15 min cooldown

Specifications

Microstat Model Comparison

Model	MicrostatN	MicrostatHe	MicrostatHiRes
Cryogen	Nitrogen	Helium (or Nitrogen)	Helium (or Nitrogen)
Sample Environment	Vacuum	Vacuum	Vacuum
Base Temperature	77K	3.2K	3.4K
Minimum Temperature	77K	2.2K*	2.7K*
Maximum Temperature	500K	500K	500K
Temperature Stability (Period)	+-0.5K (10 Mins)	+-0.1K (10 Mins)	+-0.1K (10 Mins)
Sample Space Diameter x height (mm)	20 x 2	20 x 5	20 x 5
Working Distance (mm)	2	4.5 - 5.5	2.2 - 2.7
Cooldown from Room Temperature	<10 Min	<10 Min	<15 Min
Cryogenic Consumption (L/HR) ~ 4.2K (80K for LN2)	<0.5 L/Hr	<0.45 L/Hr	<0.7 L/Hr
Vibration	<0.1 μm	<0.1 μm	<20 nm
Lateral Sample Drift at Constant Temperature	<1 μm/hr	<1 μm/hr	<150 nm/hr
Customer Wiring	4 dc	10 dc	10 dc
Learn More	Specifications	Specifications	Specifications
Contact Us	Request Pricing	Request Pricing	Request Pricing

* With 40m³ Rotary Pump Option
** Typical, in conjunction with loca vibration mitigation practices

Cryostats Applications for Microscopy

Ultraviolet-Visible Spectroscopy

Ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy or UV/Vis refers to absorption spectroscopy or reflectance spectroscopy in the ultraviolet-visible spectral region.

Microstat systems are available with a wide range of window materials, including Spectrosil B/WF for UV/vis wavelengths.

Magneto-Optical Kerr Effect

Magneto-Optical Kerr Effect (MOKE) can be used to investigate the magnetization structure of materials.

Using the Microstat He coupled with a narrow rectangular tail-set, samples can be inserted between the poles of an electromagnet while maintaining optical access to the sample.

Micro-Raman

Raman Scattering or the Raman effect is the inelastic scattering of a photon by molecules which are excited to higher vibrational or rotational energy levels.

The Microstat range of cryostats allows for Raman spectro to be recorded using microscopy objectives in a temperature-controlled sample-in-vacuum environment. Windows, both top and bottom, allow for reflective and transmission measurements.

Micro-photoluminescence

Micro-photoluminescence or Micro-PL spectroscopy is a powerful tool for investigating the optical and electronic properties of single nanostructures.

The Microstat range of cryostats allows for mapping of semiconductor microstructures with sub-micron spatial resolution and single photon counting across a wide range of temperatures.

Micro-FTIR

FTIR spectroscopy, widely used for polymer research, inorganic chemistry, pharmaceutical or drug related research, as well as solid state and semiconductor physics.

The integration of the Microstat range of cryostats can allow for spectral mapping of samples across a wide range of temperatures, giving localized information about your samples. Window flanges are available to span the near to extreme IR.

Fluorescence Spectroscopy

Fluorescence spectroscopy, a type of electromagentic spectroscopy that analyses fluorescence from a sample, and can be applied to microscopy samples using the Microstat range of cryostats.

Cryostats using liquid nitrogen or liquid helium offer temperature to below 4 K with minimal distance between sample and objective.

Mercury iTC - Intelligent Temperature Controller

The Oxford Instruments Mercury iTC temperature controller is designed specifically for the control of cryogenic sample environments. With programmable software and expandible hardware the Mercury iTC can be configured to control and monitor multiple sensors, heaters, stepper motors and pressure gauges simultaneously. The ultimate in configurable cryogenic controllers designed specifically for the Andor range of cryostats.

Features:

Touchscreen interface
High precision of 0.1 mK (24 bit A to D resolution).
Heater output up to 80 W per channel, for faster temperature ramping
Supports all standard cryogenic temperature sensors
Unique upgradeability - expansion slots for sensor, heater and controller cards.
Plug and play cards to upgrade and expand functionality.

Windows for Optistat Cryostats

Andor cryostats are supplied with Spectrosil B windows as standard providing good transmission from UV to mid-IR wavelengths.

In addition we can supply a range of window materials to suit applications from UV through the extreme IR and THz wavelengths.

All windows are user-changeable and allow you to configure your experiment with the best transmission characteristics for each of the available optical ports.

View our Optical Cryostats Windows Tool for more.

Designed to Minimize Vibration and Sample Drift

The MicrostatHiRes (High Resolution) cryostat has been designed specifically to minimize vibration and sample drift at constant temperatures. This is achieved by cooling the sample on a stable cold platform with a concentric heat exchanger rather than the use of a cold finger design and the addition of a capillary feed for helium flow.
Vibration specifications have been measured using a Leo 1450VP scanning electron microscope at Oxford Instruments NanoAnalysis UK. The results obtained showed that, when all system components have been securely held, the vibration levels recorded were better than 20nm.
Such low vibration characteristics make the MicrostatHiRes the ideal cryostat for sub-micron sample sizes and applications such as Micro-Raman, Micro-Photoluminescence and Micro-FTIR

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