Minus K Technology

SPM/NSOM

“Our company prefers the Minus K vibration isolation platform for use with our SPM/NSOM system. This platform reduces the noise to well below 0.1 nm which is unachievable with any conventional optical table. The Minus K platform is particularly effective in cutting low-frequency vibrations. Reducing the noise by over an order of magnitude has helped us obtain optimal SPM performance integrated with a variety of optical and electron optical tools. This has led to new horizons in scanned probe and integrated microscopy.”

Professor Aaron Lewis
Hebrew University & President
Nanonics Imaging Ltd.
www.nanonics.co.il

“We have tested a Nano-K bench top platform for several months; it has outperformed our air table in all specs. I am very much impressed by its performance. As a designer in the AFM field for over 15 years, I truly appreciate the ingenious design of this bench top platform. It is simple and elegant. It is the best for the buck for isolating an AFM system from the floor vibrations.

Below is an AFM image of Au film with its (111) surface terraces, the atomic step (monolayer) is very clearly discernable. Taken with PicoPlus™ system on a Nano-K bench top platform.”

Tianwei Jing, PhD
Senior VP of Engineering
Agilent Technologies, Inc.
http://www.agilent.com/find/afm


“Vibration isolation is an absolute must for Atomic Force Microscopy. The Nano-K isolators provide the best performance, affordability and convenience available. They have enabled us to get data in environments that would have been prohibitive otherwise. Everyone involved in AFM should be using Nano-K isolators.”

Sebastian A. Kossek, PhD
NanoScience Instruments, Inc.
Phoenix, Arizona
www.nanoscience.com

“We have found the last several years of working with Minus K and your products very satisfying. Your tables are honestly a great invention that actually live up to their specs. With the Minus K we have been able to consistently collect precision data that just wasn't possible with our old air tables. Thanks for an awesome product.”

Dr. Raj Lartius
Novascan Technologies, Inc.
Ames, Iowa
www.novascan.com

Microhardness Testers

“We originally selected the Minus K vibration isolation tables as a solution for challenging installations of our nanomechanical test instruments, with the intention of sticking with air tables as a lower cost, standard product. Within a short period of time, we re-evaluated that decision and began using Minus K tables on all of our Nano Indenter products. The performance is exceptional ¯ since switching to Minus K, field installation problems associated with vibration have been virtually eliminated. But equally impressive are the quality of the product, innovation in design, and outstanding support. Minus K has been a great OEM partner!”

John Swindeman
R&D Manager
MTS Systems
Nano Instruments Innovation Center
Oak Ridge, TN 37830
http://www.mtsnano.com

“We've used the Nano-K table and found its performance to be significantly better than traditional air tables. With the Nano-K, nanoindentation experiments on our NanoTest system are now possible at very low depths (under 10 nm) without worrying about the external environment.”

Dr. Ben Beake
Applications Development Scientist
Micro Materials Ltd, UK
www.micromaterials.co.uk

Biology/Neuroscience

“We have used the Biscuit tables from Minus K and found them to be far superior to tables we have previously tried. We are especially impressed with the isolation performance in the X-Y plane. Using these tables resulted in a ten fold reduction in vibrational noise which greatly facilitated measurements of absorption and fluorescence from neurobiological preparations.”

Prof. Lawrence Cohen
Dept. of Cellular & Molecular Biology
Yale University
http://info.med.yale.edu/cmphysiol/cohen/redshirtdiaries.html

“My laboratory studies the brain activity using voltage-sensitive dye imaging methods. Before the introduction of the Minus K tables we used high quality air tables. These tables were not adequate for isolating low frequency vibrations so we had to put a second air table on top of the first one.

In 1995 we bought the first Minus K table. We were impressed by its superb performance, at least ten times better than the air tables we were using. We told this news to other scientists and since then at least 20 laboratories have bought Minus K tables. We have four of them in our laboratory. We all suffer much less headaches from floor vibrations.”

Jian-young Wu, Ph.D.,
Associate Professor
Dept of Physiology and Biophysics
Georgetown University
Washington DC
http://www.georgetown.edu/faculty/wuj/

“It is my great pleasure to provide this testimonial for Minus K Technoloty vibration isolation systems. As a neuroscientist depending extensively on electrophysiological and imaging techniques, I am keenly aware of the fundamental importance of properly isolating these rigs from building vibrations. I have for many years relied on passive pneumatic vibration isolation tables for this purpose. Recently, when moving labs, I was confronted with a situation in which my existing vibration isolation equipment was inadequate. Analysis of the building and floor vibration characteristics revealed large amplitude vibrations at frequencies below 5 Hz at this new location. Field tests with an in vitro patch clamp rig, using a standard pneumatic vibration isolation table were unsatisfactory. Attracted by their performance claims (i.e., natural frequencies of 1/2 Hz or better) and competitive pricing I decided to test a Minus K vibration isolation unit with the same in vitro electrophysiology rig, despite my initial skepticism concerning the manufacturer’s performance claims. The Minus K unit performed magnificently, surpassing my best expectations. We performed a number of tests. Perhaps the most vivid way to illustrate the results of these tests is to say that a gang of colleagues literally jumping around at no more than 8 ft distance did not cause any disturbance in an active patch clamp recording. Based on these results, I am equipping my lab with Minus K vibration isolation units. Summarizing, Minus K solved my vibration problem in a very cost-effective manner and I encourage my colleagues dealing with similar problems to test these systems for themselves.”

Wic Wildering, Ph.D.
Dept. Biological Sciences and Physiology & Biophysics
University of Calgary

Audio Reproduction

“I just wanted to commend Minus K on building an outstanding product – we are extremely pleased with our BM-1 bench top isolator.

Minus K’s negative stiffness technology intrinsically makes sense to me as a mechanical engineer, and brings truly fresh thinking to the problems of vibration isolation.  Moreover, negative stiffness works – and not only does it work, but it works better than many other solutions.  After we evaluated numerous audiophile and industrial vibration isolation solutions, we found that Minus K was not only one of the strongest performers for our high-end audio application, but also provided excellent value.

Before learning of Minus K, we had anticipated needing either an air based or active isolation solution to get the sonic performance we wanted, a