Bruker Announces New High-Performance Scientific Instruments and Analytical Solutions at Pittcon 2013

At Pittcon 2013, Bruker has announced numerous new product introductions for research, industrial and applied markets, designed to deliver more confident analyses with increased sensitivity, specificity and productivity, as well as novel scientific capabilities which expand the boundaries of molecular and materials research. The new Bruker products introduced at Pittcon 2013 include:

Chromatography, Mass Spectrometry and Infrared/Raman Spectroscopy:

aurora™ Elite: This new ultra-sensitive Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS) for trace elemental detection features unprecedented 1.5 gigahertz per parts per million (1.5 GHz / ppm) sensitivity for precise and accurate quantification at single digit ppt levels and below. This makes the aurora Elite the most sensitive ICP-MS instrument, even exceeding the performance of expensive magnetic sector field ICP-MS systems in many aspects, and far exceeding the sensitivity of other quadrupole ICP-MS systems on the market today. Its extreme sensitivity makes the aurora Elite eminently suitable for semiconductor, geochemistry, materials science and related applications.

EVOQ™ Qube and Elite: The new LC-triple quadrupole (LC-TQ) mass spectrometers, the high-performance EVOQ Qube and the ultra-high sensitivity EVOQ Elite, are setting new standards for analytical performance and quantitative robustness. Similar to Bruker's successful SCION GC-TQ platform introduced in 2011, the EVOQ series delivers leading LC-TQ performance with major advances in robustness, ease of methods developments and productivity. The EVOQ platform was designed for a singular purpose - to very reliably quantify thousands of real samples with fast sample-to-report time. It delivers exceptional sensitivity, quantitative accuracy, linearity, and a wide dynamic range for multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) assays.

Helium-Free SCION Gas Chromatographs: Bruker launches new versions of its SCION 436 and 456 gas chromatographs (GCs) configured for the use of hydrogen as the carrier gas. Responding to the rising cost of Helium gas, Bruker has released these GC systems to use less expensive hydrogen gas. The SCION GC systems include hydrogen safety provisions, on board leak detection, auto shut-down procedures, and trigger outputs to shut down auxiliary equipment. Each system ships with special filters to ensure high purity delivery of the hydrogen carrier gas.

COMPACT Qq-TOF: Bruker introduces Instant Expertise™ in high-resolution LC-MS/MS with the new COMPACT mass spectrometer. The COMPACT is a bench-top accurate mass Qq-TOF LC-MS/MS system providing new class-defining sensitivity and enhanced dynamic range with Instant Expertise features, ensuring that even non-expert users can count on immediate research-caliber data for every new challenge of qualitative and quantitative analysis in applied, industrial and research markets.

TANGO™-T: The new TANGO-T FT-NIR (Fourier Transform Near Infrared) spectrometer designed especially for measuring liquid samples in transmission mode complements Bruker's TANGO-R system for measuring solids in reflection mode, a best-seller with already more than 100 systems operating successfully in various industries. Both TANGO versions have a small footprint and feature easy to use touch-screen operation for routine users. The TANGO intuitive user interface quickly and securely guides the operator through the workflow. The rugged housing makes it robust and suitable not only for laboratories, but also for industrial and food analysis environments.

Open Path Air Monitoring System OPS: The new Open Path Air Monitoring System OPS is designed for ambient air analysis. The OPS FT-IR (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer) sends a modulated infrared beam from the base unit to a reflector and analyses the returning spectrum. In addition to research applications, the monitoring of air quality in industrial facilities is a major application for the OPS, resulting in economic, environmental and safety benefits, e.g. in fence-line monitoring.

Materials Research and Analysis:

ContourGT-K: The ContourGT-K 3D optical microscope offers imaging and metrology for the widest range of surfaces, and sets a new industry standard in design and cost for surface metrology performance. With exceptional roughness and 2D/3D measurement capabilities, high-resolution imaging and the industry's most advanced user interface, the system delivers uncompromised metrology in a simplified package with a compact footprint. The gage-capable ContourGT-K provides intuitive access to an extensive library of pre-programmed filters and analyses for LED, solar cell, thick films, semiconductor, ophthalmic, medical device, MEMS and tribology applications.

TITAN Detector Shield™: This unique accessory protects the detector window of the S1 TITAN handheld XRF analyzer from being punctured by sharp objects like scrap shavings and wires, without affecting its rapid and accurate elemental analysis of almost any material. The Detector Shield minimizes the likelihood of detector damage, thus avoiding the expense and inconvenience associated with the replacement of a broken detector window, without sacrificing any analytical performance, even for light elements like magnesium, aluminum and silicon.

SkyScan 1272: This innovative high-resolution X-ray micro-CT 3D microscope for materials and life science applications can visualize up to 200 Megapixel (14,450x14,450 pixels) virtual slices through objects. More than 2,600 such slices can be reconstructed after a single data acquisition in up to three offset positions. Using advanced contrast technology, the SkyScan 1272 can differentiate object details as small as 0.35μm. An optional 16-position sample changer offers high throughput, even enabling the addition or replacement of samples without interrupting live scans. An optional GPU server and a cluster version of unique hybrid CPU/GPU software provide the fastest commercial μCT 3D reconstruction.

Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy and Preclinical Imaging:

Assure™ - Aloe vera: This new module expands the capabilities of Bruker's Assure - RMS (Raw Material Screening) NMR solutions. Fully automated, quantitative and qualitative NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) analysis enables Aloe vera screening in the cosmetics, natural products and pharmaceutical industries. Given the high demand for this versatile plant, the material identity, quality and quantity of key components, in both raw extract and finished products, need to be analyzed. Identity can be determined via the presence of key metabolites, and freshness is assessed from degradation products.

Assure™ Chemometrics Module: The Assure™-RMS chemometrics module delivers increased confidence in product conformity and materials classification in the polymer, pharmaceutical and dietary supplement industries, and in metabolomics studies. Together with the identification and quantification of key components, it provides in-depth details of materials composition and rapidly detects non-conforming material. Due to the high reproducibility of NMR, it enables the transfer of chemometric models to other laboratories without having to recollect data.

CryoProbe™ Prodigy TCI: The expanded CryoProbe Prodigy TCI probe range, now available from 500 to 700 MHz, is bringing its major boost in sensitivity at an affordable price to even more NMR users. The triple-resonance Prodigy TCI uses nitrogen-cooled RF coils and preamplifiers to deliver proton sensitivity enhancements of a factor of 2.5x, and carbon sensitivity enhancements of 2x over room temperature probes, thus offering a '300 MHz-equivalent' sensitivity boost for 500, 600 and 700 MHz NMRs at relatively low cost.

Complete Molecular Confidence (CMC) 2.0: This key update significantly enhances the original software for improved in-line, integrated routine workflows for interactive quantitation, as well as structure verification and structure elucidation. Chemists will benefit from CMC 2.0's improved integration of automated acquisition, processing and reporting, together with faster algorithm performance for step-by-step interactive workflow assistance. CMC 2.0 includes various modules which automatically assign NMR signals to structural characteristics, conduct structural consistency assessments, deliver spectral analysis and enable easy structure elucidation, culminating in compact reports for easy transfer to publications, journals or patent applications.

First 527 GHz Solid State DNP-NMR System: After its successful installation at the University of Utrecht, Netherlands, the world's highest field Dynamic Nuclear Polarization (DNP) - NMR system is now driving new research applications in biomolecular and material science. DNP significantly enhances the sensitivity of solid-state NMR by 1-2 orders of magnitude by transferring polarization from the electron spins to the nuclear spins. DNP-NMR enables completely new scientific methods on new categories of samples, with the potential to deliver ever more detailed insights into interactions at the molecular level.

Frank H. Laukien, Ph.D., Bruker's President and CEO, commented: "At Pittcon 2013, Bruker continues to set the pace in our industry for world-class Innovation with Integrity for our global customer base. With compact, easy-to-use, affordable, yet high performance products we gain access to broader markets and expand our presence in quality control, applied and industrial markets, while maintaining our excellent reputation in the scientific research community."

Pittcon Heritage Award for Professor Günther Laukien: On March 17, 2013, the Chemical Heritage Foundation (CHF) has presented the 2013 Pittcon Heritage Award in honor of Günther Laukien (1924-1997), the founder of the Bruker group. Jointly sponsored by the Pittsburgh Conference on Analytical Chemistry and Applied Spectroscopy (Pittcon) and CHF, this award recognizes outstanding individuals whose entrepreneurial careers have shaped the instrumentation community, inspired achievement, promoted public understanding of the modern instrumentation sciences, and high-lighted the role of analytical chemistry in world economies.