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Newsletter September 2021 | Menu of Newsletters
"We have used the tables from Minus K and found them to be far superior to tables we have previously tried..."
More customer comments...

-Nanotech Microscope Vibration Isolation

-Floor Vibration Isolation | FP-1 Platform + Video

-Hybrid Compound Microscope | Imaging Vibration Isolation

-Portable AFM | Negative Stiffness Vibration Isolation Supports New Compact, Portable, ezAFM+

-BioOptics Vibration Isolation | A Tool for Brain Discovery

-Neubrescope Vibration Isolation & Fiber Optic Vibration Sensing

-SAT's remarkable XD1 record-player system.
The Best Table Ever?


-AFM-Atomic Force Microscope Sees More with Vibration Isolation
at the Nanoscale Level.


-Critical Nano-Precision Negative-Stiffness vs. Active Vibration Isolation

-300 leading universities and private and government laboratories
in 52 countries use Minus K technology


-Previous Newsletters
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Nanotech Vibration Isolation
Stable Microscopy Key to Nano Research


UCLA uses negative-stiffness vibration isolation to provide ultra-stability during the assessment of chemical and spectroscopic information of individual molecular structures

(2016 Legacy Article) The tunable microwave-frequency alternating current scanning tunneling microscope (ACSTM) has opened the possibility of recording local spectra and local chemical information on insulator surfaces, much like the conventional scanning tunneling microscope (STM) has done for metals and semiconductors..

Spectroscopy in the microwave frequency range enables unrealizable measurements on conducting substrates, such as the rotational spectroscopy of a single adsorbed molecule. Developed in the early 1990s by Professor Paul Weiss, the nano-pioneering Director of the Weiss Group, a nanotechnology research unit of UCLAs California NanoSystems Institute, the ACSTMs single-molecule measurement techniques have illuminated unprecedented details of chemical behavior, including observations of the motion of a single molecule on a surface, and even the vibration of a single bond within a molecule. Such measurements are critical to understanding entities ranging from single atoms to the most complex protein assemblies.We use molecular design, tailored syntheses, intermolecular interactions and selective chemistry to direct molecules into desired positions to create nanostructures, to connect functional molecules to the outside world, and to serve as test structures for measuring single or bundled molecules, said David McMillan, Lead Technician at the Weiss Group.

Critical to understanding these variations has been developing the means to make tens- to hundreds-of-thousands of independent single-molecule measurements in order to develop sufficiently significant statistical distributions, while retaining the heterogeneity inherent in the measurements.

Vibration isolation
To achieve these nano-level chemical and spectroscopic data sets, the ACSTM must be positioned in an ultra-stable operating environment, one free of low-frequency vibrations.The lab was using almost exclusively optical tables on pneumatic isolation, said McMillan.One of our big problems has been space constraint. We needed smaller pneumatic optical tables to fit. But as the air tables get smaller, their vibration isolation performance diminishes.

Full article...

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FP-1 Floor Platforms for SEMs, TEMs, STEMs and other heavy Microscopes


The FP-1 consists of a large platform, two to four Minus K® SM-1 negative-stiffness vibration isolators, outriggers which connect the platform to the isolators, isolator floor and jack screw plates which help to spread the load on the floor and ballast weights. The FP-1 platform is a heavy steel plate which typically weighs nearly as much as the microscope itself. One reason for this design is to lower the overall system center of gravity to the level of the isolator tilt mechanism, so as to avoid horizontal-tilt coupling, which occurs when horizontal vibrations cause both a horizontal and tilting response of the column. With the system CG at the level of the isolator tilt mechanism, the vibrations are decoupled and better isolation control is achieved. Another reason for the massive platform is that the large total mass of the system helps to diminish any effects from stiff cables and hoses connected to the microscope.


FP-1 Video:

More images...


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Hybrid Compound Microscope | Imaging Vibration Isolation

Revolve Hybrid Compound Microscope Uses Negative-Stiffness Vibration Isolation To Stabilize Imaging In Vibration-Challenged Environments

The compound microscope has evolved from an instrument providing simple contrast viewing, into super-resolution systems capable of sub-diffraction accuracy. Its two platforms, upright and inverted, can be found in most laboratories doing cellular research, such as in biotech and pharmaceutical. Upright microscopes are used for viewing glass slides, and inverted for viewing live cells in Petri dishes. Despite its imaging advances, the basic architecture of the compound microscope has not substantially been modified in centuries.

This has now changed, with the recent release of the Revolve hybrid compound microscope, developed by Echo Laboratories (Echo), which has set a new precedent in microscope usability and design. The Revolve combines the full functionality of both upright and inverted microscopes in one instrument, and can switch between the two imaging modes relatively swiftly and easily. This gives the flexibility to view many types of samples with one microscope to a level of 300 350 nanometers resolution.

“More than 70 percent of labs end up having both inverted and upright microscopes,” said Jeff Huber, Director of Sales for Echo Laboratories. “But both uprights and inverts use similar objectives, illuminators, position systems and cameras. Why duplicate all of these expensive components? And why take up valuable lab space with two instruments? So, Echo Laboratories engineered a way to merge these two systems into one unified instrument, which is the Revolve microscope.”

Brightfield, Phase Contrast and Epifluorescence Imaging with iPad and Wireless Upload
his is a compound, infinity-path microscope, with applications for brightfield, phase contrast, and epi-fluorescence imaging. Current glass selection includes the entire line of Olympus objectives. Due to the unique nature of the upright/inverted combination, both a high-NA and long-working-distance transmitted-light condensers are available to support phase and brightfield. A high-accuracy locking mechanism is used to securely hold the condenser assembly in place, while still allowing for easy removal by a single lever.

Full article...

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Portable AFM | Negative Stiffness Vibration Isolation Supports New Compact, Portable, User-Friendly ezAFM+

Negative-Stiffness isolators do not require electricity or compressed air. There are no motors, pumps or chambers, and no maintenance because there is nothing to wear out. They operate purely in a passive mechanical mode

Since the release of the first commercial atomic force microscope (AFM) about 30 years ago, technology advances have steadily been implemented to improve their performance. Now, the most recent advance in ambient-temperature AFMs is making them more compact, portable and user-friendly, which is enabled by Negative-Stiffness vibration isolation.

The atomic force microscope (AFM) has become one of the foremost tools for imaging and measuring materials and cells on the nanoscale. Revealing sample details at the atomic level, with resolution on the order of fractions of a nanometer, the AFM is instrumental for imaging an array of applications, such as defining surface characterizations, lithography, data storage, and manipulation of atoms and nano-sized structures on a variety of surfaces.

The AFM utilizes a sharp tip (probe) with a radius of curvature on the order of a few nanometers attached to the end of a tiny cantilever used to scan across a sample surface to image its topography and material properties. When the tip is brought into proximity of a sample surface, forces between the tip and the surface lead to a deflection of the cantilever. This deflection is recorded using, typically, a laser beam that is reflected from the top surface of the cantilever to a photo-sensitive detector. The resultant change of position of the cantilever/probe/tip permits characteristics such as mechanical, electrostatic, magnetic, chemical and other forces to be precisely measured by the AFM. These characteristics are displayed in a three-dimensional surface profile of the sample (in the X, Y and Z axes), an advantage that the AFM can provide compared to other microscopy techniques.

Although AFM technology has advanced considerably, its benefits have not always been easily accessible for researchers requiring AFM adaptability, portability. Nor have AFMs been adequately accessible in nanotechnology student laboratories, because of lack of student skill in their operation, and budget limitations on the number of AFMs at their disposal.

A More Portable, More User-Friendly AFM
These inhibitions have now been mitigated by a relatively new compact, portable and user-friendly ambient-temperature AFM. Developed by NanoMagnetics Instruments, a leading manufacturer of scanning probe microscopes for low-temperature applications, the ezAFM+ atomic force microscope is a benchtop instrument designed for short learning times, quick setup, and ease of transport.

Full article...

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Previous Features:

Perfect 10 Audio & Turntable Vibration Isolation?

3D Surface Analysis Vibration Isolation

Charting New Depths for Understanding Friction in Micromachines

Optical Photopatterning & Photovoltaic Performance Vibration Isolation

Cleanroom Vibration Isolation:
Negative Stiffness vs Pneumatic Systems

Ultra-Low Vibration Lab
at University of Michigan
Facilitates Nanoengineering Discoveries

Portable Atom Interferometry Negative-Stiffness Vibration Isolation

Vibration Criterion (VC) Curves-Lab Analysis

Heavy Payload Systems Vibration Isolation


Press Release: CT-2 Successor to the
Award Winning Utlra-Thin CT-1 Vibration Isolator

Bad Vibrations: How to Keep the Effects of Environmental Bounce Out of Your Data

Vibration Isolation & Certifying Bowling Ball Surface Roughness

Press Release: Laser Focus World Innovator Award for
Ultra-Thin, Low-Height CT-1

How They Work>>Negative-Stiffness Vibration Isolators

Microscopy Vibration Isolation

FAQs>>Frequently Asked Questions About Vibration Isolation

Custom Vibration Isolation Systems

Audio Reproduction & Turntable Vibration Isolation

Vibration Isolator Steadies Optics for NASA Telescopes + Vacuum Isolation

Optical-Laser Vibration Isolation + video

Optical-Laser Vibration Isolation + video

Cryostat Vibration Isolation

Nanoindentation & Micro Hardness Testing
Vibration Isolation

Ultra-Low Frequency Vibration Isolation Stabilizes Scanning Tunneling Microscopy

Neuronal Research into Animal Learning, Memory Neuronal Research,
Vibration Isolation Problem & Solution

Sunken Treasure Surrounding The Coldest Cubic Meter In The Universe
Supported by Minus K Vibration Isolators

Lithium Batteries: Superionic Solid Electrolytes for Next-Generation

Spacecraft Vibration Isolation On the Ground

Behavior of a Single Molecule-UCLA's California NanoSystems Institute

Cleanroom Precision Vibration Isolation

Negative-stiffness vibration isolation is utilized to provide ultra-stability for multi-disciplined, nano-level research at UCLA's California NanoSystems Institute.

NASA/JWST Update: Custom James Webb Space Telescope Vibration Isolators Working Well

Audiophile Interests: The Doehmann Helix 1 Turntable

Minus K Technology Educational Giveaway to U.S. Colleges and Universities

Articles In The News


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Vibration Isolation News | What's Here for You:
With users at more than 300 leading universities and private and government laboratories in 52 countries, Vibration Isolation News is designed to keep our customers and friends up to date on the latest products and applications designed to facilitate better measurements and improved nanomanufacturing. We are an OEM supplier to leading manufacturers of scanning probe microscopes, micro-hardness testers and other sensitive instruments.


 

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The MK52


NASA Telescope Project

How Our Isolators Work


Spacecraft Vibration Isolation On the Ground




Minus K Technology Inc., Vibration Isolation Systems
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