Motorised micromanipulator – QUAD SUTTER INSTRUMENT

Features of the Motorised Micromanipulator – QUAD

• Four independent axes – 25 mm travel in X, Y and Z and 30 mm diagonal travel for coaxial pipette movement
• Sub-micrometric resolution (100 nm)
• Silent mode eliminates electrical noise
• Display shows coordinates in relative or absolute mode
• Compact, fanless controller occupies less bench space
• User-friendly operation with ROE
• Push-button control of WORK, HOME, LOCK, PULSE and RELATIVE functions
• Robotic HOME and WORK functions make it easy to change pipettes/microelectrodes
• Particularly suitable for in vivo electrophysiology
• USB interface for computer control

Advantages :

• Possibility of short, rapid movements (bursts) to facilitate penetration of the electrode tip into the cell (equivalent to the buzz function of certain amplifiers)
• Storage of electrode position / return to starting position

Description of the QUAD motorised micromanipulator

The QUAD® motorised micromanipulator is easy to use and has four independent axes. Each axis has a range of movement of 25 mm, a digital position display and ROE (Rotary Optical Encoder) control. The compact, intuitive controller takes up minimal bench space, has no fan and is easy to use.

The QUAD® is very simple to use. Its compact design requires very little space on the workbench. It has ROE control, a digital display showing electrode position and is intuitive to use. ROE inputs for each axis allow easy manual control of electrode position.

Five ideally placed buttons control all the basic functions in routine experimentation. Pressing and holding the WORK button quickly memorises the working position; pressing WORK again returns the manipulator to its initial position. HOME sends the joystick to a pre-defined location or to any position chosen by the experimenter, a particularly useful function for quickly changing electrodes.

When data collection is imminent, the motor drive electronics can be locked by pressing LOCK. The display coordinates can be set to zero at any point by pressing RELATIVE; return to absolute coordinates is achieved by pressing RELATIVE again.

Finally, in the case of intracellular recordings, PULSE activates a brief sequence of mechanical oscillations inducing rapid micro-movements of the micro-electrode, making it easier to cross the cell membrane.