A new series of compact, economical lasers from Coherent has been introduced for constructing space-limited point-of-care and cost sensitive research instruments for a variety of life sciences and diagnostic applications. In particular, Coherent BioRay products are a line of diode lasers which include built-in collimating and focusing optics (to an elliptical beam), self-contained power supply and drive electronics, and on-board modulation, communications and self-monitoring electronics. These lasers are initially available at five visible wavelengths (405nm, 450nm, 488nm, 520nm and 640nm) with output powers as high as 50mW.
BioRay products fill an important gap in the life sciences and diagnostic laser market by offering superior performance and simplified integration over LED sources, while being a smaller and more economical alternative for those that don’t require all the functionality of more sophisticated lasers. Compared to the divergent output of an LED light source, the collimated beam of the BioRay is much easier to condition and control. Plus, LEDs require an external current supply, while the BioRay needs only 12V input.
Typical applications for BioRay lasers include clinical diagnostic applications, cell analysers, sequencers, flow cytometers or microarray scanners. Their compact size, low heat output, small footprint and focusing optics make them particularly easy to integrate into these systems. Their excellent power stability minimises the need for instrument recalibration, and their low noise output (<0.5 per cent RMS from 20Hz to 20MHz) delivers higher accuracy measurements at low intensities.