Feasibility of an in Situ Flow Cytometer.
Abstract
Our objective was to design an in situ instrument to analyze the optical properties of individual suspended particles, which are important to ocean geochemistry, optics, and biology. The approach arrived at is that of a flow cytometer modified to facilitate in situ unattended operation (use of a battery-powered solid state laser for fluorescence excitation, and of a neural network to carry out real-time data analysis). To increase reliability we use a simple ducted flow of seawater through the instrument rather than injection of seawater into the center of a particle-free fluid stream as in conventional flow cytometers. Simple ducted flow, which does not mechanically confine sample particles to a path through the central region of the focussed laser beam, requires a means of discriminating particles with acceptable trajectories from those which pass through the less-intense edges of the beam and thus give inaccurate signals. We have demonstrated that two orthogonal infrared diode laser beams can be used for this purpose: the beams can be arranged so that particles passing through both infrared beams must also pass through the center of the fluorescence excitation beam, and signals from only these particles will be collected. The instrument is now in development.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 1994
- Accession Number
- ADA310673
Entities
People
- Albert J. Williams Iii
- Robert J. Olson
Organizations
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution