We start with the best steady-state optical bench from HORIBA Scientific, add in a pulsed laser-diode or a pulsed spark source, and finish with a superior detector-module.
The Result
The World's Most Sensitive Spectrofluorometer, with TCSPC ready to perform time-domain lifetime spectroscopy! You get the reliability and know-how of the HORIBA Scientific Fluorolog® series, together with the solid-state economy and sensitivity of IBH lifetime analysis, all in one instrument. All functions are software controlled from a host computer, giving you access to data with just a few keystrokes. A high repetition rate light source rapidly builds up a histogram of the sample's fluorescence decay.
So Why Use TCSPC for Time-Resolved Experiments?
Reasons to use the Fluorolog TCSPC include:
- Variations of the excitation beam's intensity are irrelevant
- Detects individual photons
- No pulse-smearing from boxcar gates
- High speed data-acquisitions
- Digital precision, and no analogue offset required for fitting results
- The entire decay curve is examined at once
Of all the modern time-domain methods, including boxcar integration and streak cameras, TCSPC has by far the best dynamic range. If your sample lifetimes are really important, then HORIBA Scientific-IBH TCSPC is the method for you.
Technical Specifications
Excitation Sources
Steady-State Broadband 450-W Xenon arc lamp from UV to near-IR TCSPC
- Fixed-wavelength "Plug and Play" interchangeable NanoLED pulsed laser-diodes and LEDs. Wavelengths of 280, 340, 375, 405, 440, 473, 635, 650, 785 and 830 nm are available for laser-diodes. 370,455, 465, 485, 560, 590, 605, 625 for LEDs. Standard optical pulse durations are <200 ps (<100ps typical) for laser-diodes, <1.5 ns for LEDs.
- 5000F coaxial nanosecond flashlamp with broadband output from 180-780 nm.
- Thyratron-gated spark and pulse generator (10 Hz - 100 kHz). Minimum optical pulse-width is 0.6 ns.
Spectrometers
Czerny-Turner, with classically-ruled gratings and all reflective optics. Optional double-grating spectrometers available. For standard 1200-grooves/mm.
- Resolution 0.2 nm
- Accuracy ± 0.5 nm
- Speed 150 nm/s
- Range 0 - 1300 nm
Detectors
- TCSPC and Steady State
- TBX-04 photomultiplier tube module, response 185 - 650 nm. Dark counts < 80 cps (< 20 cps typical). Timing jitter typically 180 ps FWHM, 250 ps maximum. Optioncal cooled extended-red detectors are available to 850 nm.
Lifetimes Measureable
- TCSPC < 100 ps to 100 µs lifetimes
- MCS < 10 µs to seconds (depending on source)
Software
Runs under Windows

This information has been sourced, reviewed and adapted from materials provided by HORIBA Scientific.
For more information on this source, please visit HORIBA Scientific.