HILLSBORO, Ore., July 28, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- FEI (Nasdaq:FEIC) announced two new products for cryo-electron microscopy applications: a new phase plate solution and the Titan Halo™ transmission electron microscope (TEM). The phase plate is a stable, durable solution to increase the contrast of sensitive biological samples and is available on most TEM platforms from FEI. The Titan Halo TEM provides high-quality optical performance with enhanced flexibility for multi-scale applications in life and biomaterials sciences. With these new products, researchers can now see more detail in their biological specimens, and potentially gain greater insight into the fundamental processes of living systems at the molecular scale.
FEI's phase plate addresses the historical shortcomings of traditional TEM phase plate technology by delivering a stable, reliable, long-life contrast enhancement solution for structural biology applications. Its long life (at least four months) and stability permit extended experiments. The phase plate is incorporated into the TEM system hardware and software for greater ease of use and is a key component in delivering high-quality imaging to the FEI cryo-electron microscopy workflow.
"To analyze the 3D structure of molecules and molecular complexes, structural biologists typically use applications like electron tomography, where contrast enhancement is of great importance," said Peter Fruhstorfer, vice president and general manager of Life Sciences for FEI. "The new phase plate solution extends the limits of these applications to enable new biological insights. We expect it will help our customers deliver results at the forefront of discovery."
The Titan Halo is designed for optical excellence and versatility, and can be used for either life science or materials science research in both cryo and room temperature conditions. The Titan Halo supports many FEI accessories and components, such as direct electron detectors and correctors and dedicated application software, all of which are embedded into the system and can be operated from the software interface. This smooth workflow approach makes the system easy to use, enabling more-efficient experiments to be completed in less time.
"The Titan Halo provides state-of-the-art optical performance with enhanced flexibility for multi-scale applications in life and biomaterials sciences. It is designed for a multi-user environment with various skill sets and application requirements," said Fruhstorfer. "The Titan Halo is part of FEI's high-end TEM solution portfolio, filling in between our high-performance, high-throughput Titan Krios™ cryo-TEM and our automated 200 kV field emission gun (FEG) platform, which is designed to provide high-throughput analysis at the lowest cost per structure. The Titan Halo offers our customers a new alternative that, while optimized for 300 kV applications like tomography, also provides the versatility and ease-of-use needed for a general-purpose research laboratory."
Please visit http://www.fei.com/life-sciences/structural-biology/ for more information. Or stop by the FEI booth (#916) at the Microscopy & Microanalysis (M&M) 2014 Exhibition, August 3-7, at the Connecticut Convention Center, Hartford, CT, USA. FEI will also be at the International Microscopy Congress (booth 6), September 7-12, in Prague, Czech Republic.
About FEI
FEI Company (Nasdaq:FEIC) designs, manufactures and supports a broad range of high-performance microscopy workflow solutions that provide images and answers at the micro-, nano- and picometer scales. Its innovation and leadership enable customers in industry and science to increase productivity and make breakthrough discoveries. Headquartered in Hillsboro, Ore., USA, FEI has over 2,600 employees and sales and service operations in more than 50 countries around the world. More information can be found at: www.fei.com.
FEI Safe Harbor Statement
This news release contains forward-looking statements that include statements regarding the performance capabilities and benefits of FEI's phase plate technology, the Titan Halo and Titan Krios TEMs and FEG TEMs. Factors that could affect these forward-looking statements include but are not limited to our ability to manufacture, ship, deliver and install the tools or software as expected; failure of the product or technology to perform as expected; unexpected technology problems and challenges; changes to the technology; the inability to secure and protect intellectual property needed to deploy the product or technology; the inability of FEI, its suppliers or project partners to make the technological advances required for the technology to achieve anticipated results; and the inability of the customer to deploy the tools or develop and deploy the expected new applications. Please also refer to our Form 10-K, Forms 10-Q, Forms 8-K and other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for additional information on these factors and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. FEI assumes no duty to update forward-looking statements.