Thorlabs offers four families of scientific cameras: Zelux™, Kiralux^®, Quantalux^®, and Scientific CCD. Zelux cameras are designed for general-purpose imaging and provide high imaging performance while maintaining a small footprint. Kiralux cameras have CMOS sensors in monochrome, color, NIR-enhanced, or polarization-sensitive versions and are available in compact, passively cooled housings; the CC505MU camera incorporates a hermetically sealed, TE-cooled housing. The polarization-sensitive Kiralux camera incorporates an integrated micropolarizer array that, when used with our ThorCam™ software package, captures images that illustrate degree of linear polarization, azimuth, and intensity at the pixel level. Our Quantalux monochrome sCMOS cameras feature high dynamic range combined with extremely low read noise for low-light applications. They are available in either a compact, passively cooled housing or a hermetically sealed, TE-cooled housing. We also offer scientific CCD cameras with a variety of features, including versions optimized for operation at UV, visible, or NIR wavelengths; fast-frame-rate cameras; TE-cooled or non-cooled housings; and versions with the sensor face plate removed. The tables below provide a summary of our camera offerings.

Compact Scientific Cameras
Camera Type	Zelux™ CMOS	Kiralux® CMOS					Quantalux® sCMOS
	1.6 MP	1.3 MP	2.3 MP	5 MP	8.9 MP	12.3 MP	2.1 MP
Item #	Monochrome: CS165MUa Color: CS165CUa	Mono.: CS135MU Color: CS135CU NIR-Enhanced Mono.: CS135MUN	Mono.: CS235MU Color: CS235CU	Mono., Passive Cooling: CS505MU Mono., Active Cooling: CC505MU Color: CS505CU Polarization: CS505MUP	Mono.: CS895MU Color: CS895CU	Mono.: CS126MU Color: CS126CU	Monochrome, Passive Cooling: CS2100M-USB Active Cooling: CC215MU
Product Photos (Click to Enlarge)
Electronic Shutter	Global Shutter	Global Shutter					Rolling Shutterb
Sensor Type	CMOS	CMOS					sCMOS
Number of Pixels (H x V)	1440 x 1080	1280 x 1024	1920 x 1200	2448 x 2048	4096 x 2160	4096 x 3000	1920 x 1080
Pixel Size	3.45 µm x 3.45 µm	4.8 µm x 4.8 µm	5.86 µm x 5.86 µm	3.45 µm x 3.45 µm			5.04 µm x 5.04 µm
Optical Format	1/2.9" (6.2 mm Diag.)	1/2" (7.76 mm Diag.)	1/1.2" (13.4 mm Diag.)	2/3" (11 mm Diag.)	1" (16 mm Diag.)	1.1" (17.5 mm Diag.)	2/3" (11 mm Diag.)
Peak Quantum Efficiency (Click for Plot)	Monochrome: 69% at 575 nm Color: Click for Plot	Monochrome: 59% at 550 nm Color: Click for Plot NIR: 60% at 600 nm	Monochrome: 78% at 500 nm Color: Click for Plot	Monochrome & Polarization: 72% (525 to 580 nm) Color: Click for Plot	Monochrome: 72% (525 to 580 nm) Color: Click for Plot	Monochrome: 72% (525 to 580 nm) Color: Click for Plot	Monochrome: 61% (at 600 nm)
Max Frame Rate (Full Sensor)	34.8 fps	92.3 fps	39.7 fps	35 fps	20.8 fps	14.6 fps	50 fps
Read Noise	<4.0 e- RMS	<7.0 e- RMS	<7.0 e- RMS	<2.5 e- RMS			<1 e- Median RMS; <1.5 e- RMS
Digital Output	10 Bit (Max)	10 Bit (Max)	12 Bit (Max)				16 Bit (Max)
PC Interface	USB 3.0
Available Fanless Cooling	N/A	N/A	N/A	0 °C at 20 °C Ambient (CC505MU Only)	N/A		0 °C at 20 °C Ambient (CC215MU Only)
Housing Size (Click for Details)	0.59" x 1.72" x 1.86" (15.0 x 43.7 x 47.2 mm3)	Passively Cooled CMOS Camera TE-Cooled CMOS Camera					Passively Cooled sCMOS Camera TE-Cooled sCMOS Camera
Typical Applications	General Purpose Imaging, Brightfield Microscopy, Machine Vision & Robotics, UAV, Drone, & Handheld Imaging, Inspection, Monitoring	VIS/NIR Imaging, Electrophysiology/Brain Slice Imaging, Materials Inspection, Multispectral Imaging, Ophthalmology/Retinal Imaging, Vascular Imaging, Laser Speckle Imaging, Semiconductor Inspection, Fluorescence Microscopy, Brightfield Microscopy	Fluorescence Microscopy, Immunohistochemistry, Machine Vision, Inspection, General Purpose Imaging	Mono. & Color: Fluorescence Microscopy, Immunohistochemistry, Machine Vision & Inspection Polarization: Machine Vision & Inspection, Transparent Material Detection, Surface Reflection Reduction	Fluorescence Microscopy, Immunohistochemistry, Large FOV Slide Imaging, Machine Vision, Inspection		Fluorescence Microscopy, VIS/NIR Imaging, Quantum Dots, Autofluorescence, Materials Inspection, Multispectral Imaging

• These item numbers are representative of the Zelux family. These cameras are available with or without external hardware triggers.
• Rolling Shutter with Equal Exposure Pulse (EEP) Mode for Synchronizing the Camera and Light Sources for Even Illumination

Scientific CCD Cameras
Camera Type	Fast Frame Rate VGA CCD		1.4 MP CCD	4 MP CCD	8 MP CCD
Item # Prefix	Monochrome: 340M	UV-Enhanced Monochrome: 340UV	Monochrome: 1501M Color: 1501C	Monochrome: 4070M Color: 4070C	Monochrome: 8051M Color: 8051C	Monochrome, No Sensor Face Plate: S805MU
Product Photo (Click to Enlarge)
Electronic Shutter	Global Shutter
Sensor Type	CCD
Number of Pixels (H x V)	640 x 480		1392 x 1040	2048 x 2048	3296 x 2472
Pixel Size	7.4 µm x 7.4 µm		6.45 µm x 6.45 µm	7.4 µm x 7.4 µm	5.5 µm x 5.5 µm
Optical Format	1/3" (5.92 mm Diagonal)		2/3" (11 mm Diagonal)	4/3" (21.4 mm Diagonal)	4/3" (22 mm Diagonal)
Peak QE (Click for Plot)	55% at 500 nm	10% at 485 nm	Monochrome: 60% at 500 nm Color: Click for Plot	Monochrome: 52% at 500 nm Color: Click for Plot	Monochrome: 51% at 460 nm Color: Click for Plot	51% at 460 nm
Max Frame Rate (Full Sensor)	200.7 fps (at 40 MHz Dual-Tap Readout)		23 fps (at 40 MHz Single-Tap Readout)	25.8 fps (at 40 MHz Quad-Tap Readout)a	17.1 fps (at 40 MHz Quad-Tap Readout)b	17.1 fps (at 40 MHz Quad-Tap Readout)
Read Noise	<15 e- at 20 MHz		<7 e- at 20 MHz (Standard Models) <6 e- at 20 MHz (-TE Models)	<12 e- at 20 MHz	<10 e- at 20 MHz
Digital Output (Max)	14 Bitc		14 Bit	14 Bitc		14 Bit
Available Fanless Cooling	Passive Thermal Management		-20 °C at 20 °C Ambient Temperature		-10 °C at 20 °C Ambient	Passive Thermal Management
Available PC Interfaces	USB 3.0 or Gigabit Ethernet					USB 3.0
Housing Dimensions (Click for Details)	Non-Cooled Scientific CCD Camera		Cooled Scientific CCD Camera Non-Cooled Scientific CCD Camera			No Face Plate Scientific CCD Camera
Typical Applications	Ca++ Ion Imaging, Particle Tracking, Flow Cytometry, SEM/EBSD, UV Inspection		Fluorescence Microscopy, VIS/NIR Imaging, Quantum Dots, Multispectral Imaging, Immunohistochemistry (IHC), Retinal Imaging	Fluorescence Microscopy, Transmitted Light Microscopy, Whole-Slide Microscopy, Electron Microscopy (TEM/SEM), Inspection, Material Sciences	Fluorescence Microscopy, Whole-Slide Microscopy, Large FOV Slide Imaging, Histopathology, Inspection, Multispectral Imaging, Immunohistochemistry (IHC)	Beam Profiling & Characterization, Interferometry, VCSEL Inspection, Quantitative Phase-Contrast Microscopy, Ptychography, Digital Holographic Microscopy

• Limited to 13 fps at 40 MHz dual-tap readout for Gigabit Ethernet cameras; quad-tap readout is unavailable for Gigabit Ethernet cameras.
• Limited to 8.5 fps at 40 MHz dual-tap readout for Gigabit Ethernet cameras; quad-tap readout is unavailable for Gigabit Ethernet cameras.
• Gigabit Ethernet cameras operating in dual-tap readout mode are limited to 12-bit digital output.

Applications

• Applications Overview
• Multispectral Imaging
• Thrombosis Studies
• Live Dual-Channel Imaging

Applications Overview

Thorlabs' Scientific-Grade Cameras are ideal for a variety of applications. The photo gallery below contains images acquired with our 1.4 MP CCD, 4 MP CCD, 8 MP CCD, and fast frame rate CCD cameras.

To download some of these images as high-resolution, 16-bit TIFF files, please click here. It may be necessary to use an alternative image viewer to view the 16-bit files. We recommend ImageJ, which is a free download.

Standard, Customized, or OEM Cameras and Software for a Range of Applications (Click Each Image for Details)
Intracellular Dynamics	Brightfield Microscopy	Ophthalmology (NIR)	Fluorescence Microscopy	Multispectral Imaging	Neuroscience	SEM/TEM
Thorlabs' Scientific Cameras Recommended for Each Application Above
Quantalux® 2.1 MP sCMOS 200 FPS VGA CCD	Kiralux® 1.3 MP CMOS Zelux™ 1.6 MP CMOS Kiralux 2.3 MP CMOS Kiralux 5 MP CMOS Kiralux 8.9 MP CMOS Kiralux 12.3 MP CMOS	Kiralux 1.3 MP CMOS Kiralux 2.3 MP CMOS Kiralux 5 MP CMOS Kiralux 8.9 MP CMOS Kiralux 12.3 MP CMOS 1.4 MP CCD	Quantalux 2.1 MP sCMOS Kiralux 2.3 MP CMOS Kiralux 5 MP CMOS Kiralux 8.9 MP CMOS Kiralux 12.3 MP CMOS	Quantalux 2.1 MP sCMOS Kiralux 2.3 MP CMOS Kiralux 5 MP CMOS	Quantalux 2.1 MP sCMOS Kiralux 2.3 MP CMOS Kiralux 5 MP CMOS Kiralux 8.9 MP CMOS Kiralux 12.3 MP CMOS	1.4 MP CCD 4 MP CCD 200 FPS VGA CCD

Multispectral Imaging

The video to the right is an example of a multispectral image acquisition using a liquid crystal tunable filter (LCTF) in front of a monochrome camera. With a sample slide exposed to broadband light, the LCTF passes narrow bands of light that are transmitted from the sample. The monochromatic images are captured using a monochrome scientific camera, resulting in a datacube – a stack of spectrally separated two-dimensional images which can be used for quantitative analysis, such as finding ratios or thresholds and spectral unmixing.

In the example shown, a mature capsella bursa-pastoris embryo, also known as Shepherd's-Purse, is rapidly scanned across the 420 nm - 730 nm wavelength range using Thorlabs' KURIOS-WB1 Liquid Crystal Tunable Filter. The images are captured using our 1501M-GE Scientific Camera, which is connected, with the liquid crystal filter, to a Cerna^® Series Microscope. The overall system magnification is 10X. The final stacked/recovered image is shown below.

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Final Stacked/Recovered Image

Thrombosis Studies

Thrombosis is the formation of a blood clot within a blood vessel that will impede the flow of blood in the circulatory system. The videos below are from experimental studies on the large-vessel thrombosis in Mice performed by Dr. Brian Cooley at the Medical College of Wisconsin. Three lasers (532 nm, 594 nm, and 650 nm) were expanded and then focused on a microsurgical field of an exposed surgical site in an anesthetized mouse. A custom 1.4 Megapixel Camera with integrated filter wheel were attached to a Leica Microscope to capture the low-light fluorescence emitted from the surgical site. See the videos below with their associated descriptions for further information.

Reference: Cooley BC. In vivo fluorescence imaging of large-vessel thrombosis in mice. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 31, 1351-1356, 2011. All animal studies were done under protocols approved by the Medical College of Wisconsin Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee.

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Example Setup for Simultaneous NIR/DIC and Fluorescence Imaging

Live Dual-Channel Imaging

Many life science imaging experiments require a cell sample to be tested and imaged under varying experimental conditions over a significant period of time. One common technique to monitor complex cell dynamics in these experiments uses fluorophores to identify relevant cells within a sample, while simultaneously using NIR or differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy to probe individual cells. Registering the two microscopy images to monitor changing conditions can be a difficult and frustrating task.

Live overlay imaging allows both images comprising the composite to be updated in real-time versus other methods that use a static image with a real-time overlay. Overlays with static images require frequent updates of the static image due to drift in the system or sample, or due to repositioning of the sample. Live overlay imaging removes that dependency by providing live streaming in both channels.

Using the ThorCam overlay plug-in with the two-way camera microscope mount, users can generate real-time two-channel composite images with live streaming updates from both camera channels, eliminating the need for frequent updates of a static overlay image. This live imaging method is ideal for applications such as calcium ratio imaging and electrophysiology.

Example Images

Simultaneous Fluorescence and DIC Imaging

The image sequence below shows mouse kidney cells imaged using a dichroic filter to separate the fluorescence and DIC signals into different cameras. These images are then combined into a two-channel composite live image with false color fluorescence by the ThorCam overlay plug-in.

Fluorescence Image

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DIC Image

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2-Channel Composite Live Image

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In the image above, the pipette is visible in the DIC image as two lines near the center of the frame.

Microaspiration Using a Micropipette

The image to the right shows a live, simultaneous overlay of fluorescence and DIC images. The experiment consists of a microaspiration technique using a micropipette to isolate a single neuron that expresses GFP. This neuron can then be used for PCR. This image was taken with our 1.4 Megapixel Cameras and a two-camera mount and shows the live overlay of fluorescence and DIC from the ThorCam plug-in. Image courtesy of Ain Chung, in collaboration with Dr. Andre Fenton at NYU and Dr. Juan Marcos Alarcon at The Robert F. Furchgott Center for Neural and Behavioral Science, Department of Pathology, SUNY Downstate Medical Center.

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Simultaneous NIR Dodt Contrast and Epi Fluorescence imaging

The image to the right shows a live, simultaneous overlay of fluorescence and near-infrared Dodt contrast images of a 50 µm brain section from a CX3CR1-GFP mouse, which has been immunostained for PECAM-1 with Alexa-687 to highlight vasculature. The Dodt contrast uses a quarter annulus and a diffuser to create a gradient of light across the sample that can reveal the structure of thick samples. The image was taken with our Scientific Cameras and a two-camera mount. Sample courtesy of Dr. Andrew Chojnacki, Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Live Cell Imaging Facility, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, University of Calgary.