Preliminary plans for 3rd multi-immersion objective lens

We are going public with tentative plans for our third multi-immersion objective lens. By end-2019 we plan to finalize the design based on feedback, plus decide how large of an order to place for them (the larger the order the smaller the cost, but we have to be assured they will sell). So please get in touch if you are interested, and please give your feedback!  The current plan is to have them available late spring 2020.

This objective lens design was inspired by three use cases:

1. Lattice light sheet or similar high-NA live cell light sheet imaging. It can replace the Nikon 25x/1.1 W objective which is commonly used but far from ideal for this application.
2. Imaging cleared tissue with higher NA than any existing cleared tissue or glycerin objective. Working distance and field of view are relatively modest for this application but sufficient to be useful for some samples.
3. Single-objective light sheet with a relatively long working distance.

Here is a brief overview of the preliminary specifications:

• NA 1.05 in water, NA 1.22 in ECi or BABB
• 48x in water, 56x in ECi or BABB (with 200 mm tube lens)
• 0.5 mm diameter FOV
• 3.05 mm working distance
• designed for 1P light sheet (plan-corrected, optimized for visible)
• 75 mm parfocal distance, M25x0.75 threads, 57° mechanical half-angle (fits in place of Nikon 25x/1.1w)
• price $25k-$30k depending on production run size

Like our other multi-immersion objectives it features a curved first surface which allows it to be used in any dipping medium without a correction collar. Tentatively the chromatic correction is optimized for water and degrades somewhat in organic media, but we could change this before finalizing.  We hope to make it resistant to dipping in harsh organic chemicals like DBE and BABB like our other multi-immersion objectives but we aren’t 100% sure whether that will be possible yet (if that’s crucial to you please let me know); for sure in will work with water, glycerin, FocusClear, etc.

I’d love to talk in person about this lens if you happen to be attending SfN Oct 21-23, LSFM Dec 4-6, or ASCB/EMBO Dec 8-10. Otherwise please contact me by email for further details and to give your feedback. My “survey questions” include the following:

• How would you use this objective lens? (e.g. lattice, cleared tissue, and/or SOLS)
• Any specification you would like changed? How?
• How certain would you purchase it within 2 years?

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Jon Daniels

Jon Daniels is a scientist, engineer, and jack-of-all-trades at Applied Scientific Instrumentation.

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Latest posts by Jon Daniels (see all)

• Crowd-funding a high-NA multi-immersion objective lens - May 26, 2021
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• Preliminary plans for 3rd multi-immersion objective lens - October 21, 2019