Patent · US Expired

Fluorometer detection system

US5323008A · kind A · utility

52Cited by
8References
32Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateMar 23, 1992
Grant dateJun 21, 1994
Priority date
Expiry dateMar 23, 2012

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG01N2021/6463
  • WIPO fieldMeasurement
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

An improved fluorescence detection system is provided which utilizes a relatively high powered, relatively high repetition rate light source with high speed detection electronics to increase system sensitivity and accuracy. In the preferred embodiments, a laser diode is the light source. In one embodiment, the position of a time window is varied to compile a decay profile of a fluorophore. In another embodiment, the time to detection of a photon is used to compile the decay profile. In one aspect of this invention, a histogram of the fluorescence decay is generated by determining a preliminary histogram of the shape and multiplying it by the ratio of the total number of events divided by the number of events comprising the preliminary histogram. In another aspect of this invention, the time of detection after excitation of the photon is started from a random time, such as after a preceding event is detected and the data stored.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.