Zeiss confocal laser module , open!
Mates, Wed Jun 11 2008, 03:02PMHi, this is my first post in this section. I'm only the end user of lasers, I've never investigated them.
Recently there was a technician repairing something in the laser module of our Zeiss confocal microscope so I took a picture of the guts... Nice work iside, indeed.
Cheers, Mates
Re: Zeiss confocal laser module , open!
Bjørn, Wed Jun 11 2008, 03:36PM
Very nice hardware.
I once made a primitive version inspired by Minsky's 1950's design. The sample was connected to two voice coils to get X-Y drive and there was a fixed red laser with optics from a CD player. The voice coils were controlled by two 16 bit D/A converters.
With all the cheap DVD players floating around I am sure someone could whip one up in a hurry. Maybe with a USB connection then we could all build one.
Bjørn, Wed Jun 11 2008, 03:36PM
Very nice hardware.
I once made a primitive version inspired by Minsky's 1950's design. The sample was connected to two voice coils to get X-Y drive and there was a fixed red laser with optics from a CD player. The voice coils were controlled by two 16 bit D/A converters.
With all the cheap DVD players floating around I am sure someone could whip one up in a hurry. Maybe with a USB connection then we could all build one.
Re: Zeiss confocal laser module , open!
Download, Mon Jun 16 2008, 01:11PM
That's great hardware, how much did that set you back?
Download, Mon Jun 16 2008, 01:11PM
That's great hardware, how much did that set you back?
Re: Zeiss confocal laser module , open!
Shaun, Mon Jun 16 2008, 06:00PM
Funny, the thumbnail looked to me like it was a picture of a pile of junk parts and wires, but upon enlarging you can see how incredibly precise everything is.
BTW is that granite it's mounted on, or something else? Why is that?
Shaun, Mon Jun 16 2008, 06:00PM
Funny, the thumbnail looked to me like it was a picture of a pile of junk parts and wires, but upon enlarging you can see how incredibly precise everything is.
BTW is that granite it's mounted on, or something else? Why is that?
Re: Zeiss confocal laser module , open!
Bjørn, Mon Jun 16 2008, 07:07PM
Granite is very good for precision systems like this. It is heavy, it is stiff and it is a composite material where the grains have a different speed of sound so it dampens vibrations very well.
Bjørn, Mon Jun 16 2008, 07:07PM
Granite is very good for precision systems like this. It is heavy, it is stiff and it is a composite material where the grains have a different speed of sound so it dampens vibrations very well.
Re: Zeiss confocal laser module , open!
Mates, Tue Jul 01 2008, 02:49PM
Yes, it is granite or some kind of artificial stone - I was also surprised. All the laser modules we have are based on simillar granite platforms...
Mates, Tue Jul 01 2008, 02:49PM
Shaun wrote ...
Funny, the thumbnail looked to me like it was a picture of a pile of junk parts and wires, but upon enlarging you can see how incredibly precise everything is.
BTW is that granite it's mounted on, or something else? Why is that?
Funny, the thumbnail looked to me like it was a picture of a pile of junk parts and wires, but upon enlarging you can see how incredibly precise everything is.
BTW is that granite it's mounted on, or something else? Why is that?
Yes, it is granite or some kind of artificial stone - I was also surprised. All the laser modules we have are based on simillar granite platforms...
Re: Zeiss confocal laser module , open!
rp181, Tue Jul 01 2008, 04:37PM
what exactly does this do?
rp181, Tue Jul 01 2008, 04:37PM
what exactly does this do?
Re: Zeiss confocal laser module , open!
Bjørn, Tue Jul 01 2008, 05:28PM
It is a microscope that works by scanning a small dot of light over the surface and recording the strength of the reflected light. In a normal microscope all of the surface (and under the surface) will send light through the optics and it is very difficult to get optimal quality. When only a single dot is emitting light you can get a much higher contrast between fine details. Since it is know with perfect precision where the light comes from it is possible to do different tricks too to exctract more information.
In theory this can be made a lot cheaper than a normal microscope of the same quality but as the picture shows it is also possible to make it very complicated and expensively.
Some early TV cameras worked by the same principle, then they used light sensors instead of lamps to "light" the scene. Instead of adjusting the strength of the lamps they adjusted the sensitivity of the sensors. Think about it for a while, it has some interesting implications.
Bjørn, Tue Jul 01 2008, 05:28PM
It is a microscope that works by scanning a small dot of light over the surface and recording the strength of the reflected light. In a normal microscope all of the surface (and under the surface) will send light through the optics and it is very difficult to get optimal quality. When only a single dot is emitting light you can get a much higher contrast between fine details. Since it is know with perfect precision where the light comes from it is possible to do different tricks too to exctract more information.
In theory this can be made a lot cheaper than a normal microscope of the same quality but as the picture shows it is also possible to make it very complicated and expensively.
Some early TV cameras worked by the same principle, then they used light sensors instead of lamps to "light" the scene. Instead of adjusting the strength of the lamps they adjusted the sensitivity of the sensors. Think about it for a while, it has some interesting implications.
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