Process and apparatus for detecting structural changes of specimens

US5999262A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• Carl Zeiss Jena GmbH · DE

Inventors

• Hans-Juergen Dobschal · Kleinromstedt, DE
• Werner Fuchs · Herrsching am Ammersee, DE
• Dieter Graefe · Jena, DE
• Guenter Gauglitz · Bocholt, DE
• Andreas Brecht · Waldbronn, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Dec 18, 1997
• Grant date: Dec 7, 1999
• Expiry date: Dec 18, 2017

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G01N21/553
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A process and a device are described for detecting physical, chemical, biological or biochemical reactions and interactions on biochemically or chemically functionalized specimen carriers in the form of layers or films from the spectral reflection after irradiation of the specimens with light of different wavelengths. In so doing, parameters for the nature of the specimens are determined in an economical and highly accurate manner and with a high degree of parallelism in the measurements. According to the process, the specimens are arranged on a substrate plate with a carrier layer of a carrier plate and are irradiated with light. The following process steps are carried out: temporally resolved illumination of an areal arrangement of specimens to be analyzed by light of different wavelengths from a tunable light source or from a scanning monochromator which is arranged subsequent to a polychromatic light source; b) the imaging of the beam component reflected on at least one boundary surface of each specimen or of the beam components or interferences reflected and interfered, respectively, at boundary surfaces of each specimen which are arranged one behind the other in the direction…