NCL Instrumentation

Below are examples of the instrumentation commonly utilized by the NCL in the characterization of submitted nanomaterials; this is not an exhaustive list. For more detailed information about our instrumentation capabilities please contact the NCL at (301)846-6939 or ncl@mail.nih.gov.

The mention of trade names and manufacturers is for informational purposes only. The NCL does not endorse any of the suppliers listed below. Equivalent instrumentation from alternate vendors can be substituted.

CHEMICAL CHARACTERIZATION

• Biacore
  • Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) based Biacore 3000 *
  • Biacore 2000 *
  • Biacore T100 *
• Capillary Electrophoresis (CE) with UV/vis detector (Beckman P/ACE MDQ) *
• CEM Reaction Microwave (Mars X 230/60)
• Centrifugal Field Flow Fractionation (cFFF) with UV-Vis/Diode Array detector (DAD) and Multi-Angle Laser Light Scattering (MALLS) detector (Postnova Analytics)
• Chemistry Analyzer (Vetscan, 1200-1000)
• Chromatography
  • Combi-Flash (Teledyne)
  • High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) with UV-vis, Fluorescence, and Charged Aerosol Detectors *
  • High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) with Diode Array UV/vis, Fluorescence, and Refractive Index Detectors (Shimadzu)
  • Fast Protein Liquid Chromatography (FPLC), Amersham/Pharmacia, ÄKTAPrime Plus
  • Fast Protein Liquid Chromatography (FPLC), Amersham/Pharmacia, ÄKTABasic 10
  • Field Flow Fractionation/Size-Exclusion Chromatography - Multi-Angle Laser Light Scattering (FFF/SEC-MALLS) with Diode Array UV-vis and Refractive Index Detectors and Autosampler (Agilent, G1329A) (Wyatt Tech, Eclipse 2 DAWN EOS)
• DAWN HELEOS II (Wyatt)
• Dynamic Light Scattering
  • Malvern ZetaSizer with backscattering detector
  • Malvern ZetaSizer with 90° detector
  • DynaPro Titan
• Electrochemical Workstation (CH Instruments, Inc., CHI 660D)
• Mass Spectrometry
  • Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) (Agilent, 7500CX)
  • Liquid Chromatograph interfaced to Mass Selective Detector (LC-MS) (Agilent, 1100 LC; 1100SL mass detector) *
  • Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization-Time of Flight (MALDI-TOF) Mass Spectrometer with CovalX High Mass Detection System (Applied Biosystems, Voyager DE-PRO) *
  • Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization-Time of Flight (MALDI-TOF/TOF) Mass Spectrometer with ImagePrep Tissue Imaging Device (Bruker, Ultraflex III) *
  • Single Quad Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization-Time of Flight (MALDI-TOF) (Shimadzu)
• LV1 Microfluidizer (Microfluidics)
• Microscopes
  • Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) with tapping and contact mode, liquid cell imaging, environment and temperature control, PicoTrec recognition force mapping (Agilent 5550 SPM)
  • Electron Microscopes
    • Hitachi 7600 Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) *
    • Hitachi 7650 Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) *
    • FEI Tecnai T12 Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) (LaB6 gun, 120 kV, STEM mode with energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) detector) *
    • FEI Tecnai T20 Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) (LaB6 gun, 200 kV, with Cryo and 3D tomography function) *
    • Hitachi S3000 Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) (with EDX detector) *
    • Poseidon Liquid Cell Holder
• Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Spectrophotometer, 400 MHz (Varion INOVA) *
• pH Titrator (Metrohm, Titrando 836)
• qNano with Scanning Ion Occlusion detection (Izon)
• Spectroscopy
  • Circular Dichroism Spectrophotometer (AVIV 202)
  • Fluorescence Spectrophotometer (Horiba, Fluoromax-4)
  • Fourier Transform Infrared/ Fourier Transform Near Infrared (FT-OR/FT-NIR) Spectrophotometer (Perkin Elmer, Spectrum 400)
  • Ultraviolet-Visible (UV-vis) Spectrophotometer (Perkin Elmer, Lambda 35)
  • NS2 Nanospectralyzer (Applied Nanofluorescence) with Raman, near-IR fluoresence, and near-IR/visible absorption capabilities
• Spin Coater (Laurell, WS-400B-6NPP lite)
• Thermogravimetric Analysis/Differential Scanning Calorimetry (TGA/DSC) (Mettler-Toledo)

BIOLOGICAL CHARACTERIZATION

• Blood Analyzer
  • Vetscan, 200-1000
  • Drew Hemavet *
  • Abaxis VetScan *
• Cell Counters
  • Cellometer (Nexcelom, Auto T4)
  • Coulter Counter (Beckman/Coulter, Z2)
• Coagulometer (Diagnostica Stago, Start 4)
• Computed Tomography (CT) Scanners
  • Siemens Inveon PET/CT *
  • Bioscan NanoSPECT/CT *
• Digital Slide Scanner (Aperio Scanscope) *
• Flow Cytometer (BD, Fascsalibur 4)
• Freeze Dryers
  • Labconco, 7751020
  • Labconco, Freezone 2.5
• Imaging System (Kodak, IS2000)
• Kinetic Turbidity (Associates of Cape Cod, Pyros Kinetix)
• Liquid Scintillation Counter (Beckman/Coulter, LS6500)
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) (Phillips Achieva Quasar, 3.0 T) *
• Microscopes
  • Fluorescent Microscope (Zeiss, Axiphot 2)
  • Optical Microscopes
    • Nikon, Eclipse TS100
    • Nikon, Eclipse TE2000U
    • Olympus Vanox *
• Plate Readers
  • Molecular DE, Spectramax M5
  • Tecan, Safire II
• Real-Time Cell Electronic Sensing (RT-CES) (Aceabio, PSC3X16)
• Thermal Cyclers
  • Real-Time PCR Thermal Cycler (Bio-Rad, IQ5)
• Ultrasound (Visual Sonics, Vevo 770) *

(* Denotes core facility instrumentation to which NCL has access)