A microplate reader includes a plurality of sets of: a light emitting portion disposed on one side of a microplate and corresponding to one well of the microplate; a light receiving portion disposed on an opposite side to the light emitting portion across the microplate and corresponding to one well of the microplate; and a light receiving light guide path disposed between the light receiving portion and the microplate and guiding light emitted from the light emitting portion and passing through a sample contained in the well to the light receiving portion. The microplate reader further includes a light guiding section configured to enclose a plurality of the light receiving light guide paths by an enclosure member made of a pigment-containing resin containing a pigment having a light-absorbing property. Light emitted from one light emitting portion passing through one light receiving light guide path and reaching one light receiving portion.

Analyte arrays such as solutes in a slab-shaped gel following electrophoresis, and particularly arrays that are in excess of 3 cm square and up to 25 cm square and higher, are imaged at distances of 5 cm or less by either forming sub-images of the entire array and stitching together the sub-images by computer-based stitching technology, or by using an array of thin-film photoresponsive elements that is coextensive with the analyte array to form a single image of the array.

A confocal chromatic device for inspecting the surface of an object such as a wafer, including a plurality of optical measurement channels with collection apertures arranged for collecting the light reflected by the object through a chromatic lens at a plurality of measurement points, the plurality of optical measurement channels including optical measurement channels with an intensity detector for measuring a total intensity of the collected light. A method is also provided for inspecting the surface of an object such as a wafer including tridimensional structures.

Apparatus for determining a property of products, in particular plant or animal products, the apparatus comprising: a conveyor configured for conveying products one-by-one along a transport path in a transport direction; a light source configured for illuminating a first illumination area of the transport path, wherein the first illumination area extends substantially across the transverse width of the transport path; and a sensor structure configured for receiving light from a sensing area of the transport path, wherein the sensing area extends substantially across the transverse width of the transport path, wherein the sensing area is adjacent to the first illumination area.

An analysis (e.g., LIBS) system includes a source of radiation, an optical emission path for the radiation from the source of radiation to a sample, and an optical detection path for photons emitted by the sample. A detector fiber bundle transmits photons to the spectrometer subsystem. At least one fiber of the fiber bundle is connected to an illumination source (e.g., an LED) for directing light via at least a portion of the detection path in a reverse direction to the sample for aligning, sample presence detection, localizing, and/or focusing based on analysis of the resulting illumination spot on the sample.

A thermal cycling device comprising a number of fixed thermal zones and a fixed conduit passing through the thermal zones. A controller maintains each thermal zone including its section of conduit at a constant temperature. A series of droplets flows through the conduit so that each droplet is thermally cycled, and a detection system detects fluorescence from droplets at all of the thermal cycles. The conduit is in a single plane, and so a number of thermal cycling devices may be arranged together to achieve parallelism. The flow conduit comprises a channel and a capillary tube inserted into the channel. The detection system may perform scans along a direction to detect radiation from a plurality of cycles in a pass.

A biological sample analysis system including a sample preparation system forming droplets of segmented sample separated by a carrier fluid immiscible with the sample. The droplets include reaction mixtures for amplification of at least one target nucleic acid. A thermal cycling device having a sample block having a plurality of controlled thermal zones, and a containment structure in thermal communication with the plurality of controlled thermal zones. The containment structure receives and contains the droplets of segmented sample separated by the immiscible carrier fluid from the sample preparation system. A controller for controlling a temperature in each thermal zone of the sample block. A detection system detects electromagnetic radiation emitted from each of the droplets individually from the queue of droplets as they flow past the detection system. A positioning system to facilitate moving a queue of the droplets in the thermal cycling device relative to the detection system.

An all-optical ultrasonic detection device based on light-induced ultrasound and laser interference. In the device, a first laser is connected to an optical switch, the optical switch is connected to a dielectric film and a second laser generates a reference laser beam and a plurality of detection laser beams. The reference laser beam generates a first frequency-shifted reference laser beam and a plurality of second frequency-shifted reference laser beams. The first frequency-shifted reference laser beam generates a carrier signal. The detection laser beams are reflected by the dielectric film and then interfere with the second frequency-shifted reference laser beams. The interference light passes through a fourth fiber coupler and reaches a second photodiode to generate a frequency-modulated signal. The frequency-modulated signal and the carrier signal are input to a frequency mixer to generate a mixed signal. An acquisition unit is configured to obtain a vibration signal for the to-be-detected object.

There is described a method for performing a Raman spectroscopy measurement on a sample. The method generally has sequentially illuminating an area of said sample with first and second excitation signals, said first excitation signal being slightly spectrally spaced-apart from said second excitation signal, resulting in said area sequentially emitting first and second emission signals; upon receiving said first emission signal, measuring a first intensity value being indicative of optical intensity of said first emission signal within at least a detection band; upon receiving said second emission signal, measuring a second intensity value being indicative of optical intensity of said second emission signal within said detection band; and performing said Raman spectroscopy measurement by comparing said first intensity value to said second intensity value.

A spectroscopic system may include: a probe having a probe tip and an optical coupler, the optical coupler including an emitting fiber group and first and second receiving fiber groups, each fiber group having a first end and a second end, wherein the first ends of the fiber groups are formed into a bundle and optically exposed through the probe tip; a light source optically coupled to the second end of the emitting fiber group, the light source emitting light in at least a first waveband and a second waveband, the second waveband being different from the first waveband; a first spectrometer optically coupled to the second end of the first receiving fiber group and configured to process light in the first waveband; and a second spectrometer optically coupled to the second end of the second receiving fiber group and configured to process light in the second waveband.