4 ports Fluorescence Mini Cube - GCaMP
4 ports Fluorescence Mini Cube - GCaMP
Dual excitation band fiber photometry measurements use a Fluorescence Mini Cube with 4 ports: one port for the functional fluorescence excitation light, one for the isosbestic excitation, one for the fluorescence detection, and one for the sample. The cube has dichroic mirrors to combine isosbestic and fluorescence excitations and separate the fluorescence emission and narrow bandpass filters limiting the excitation fluorescence spectrum. E stands for fluorescence excitation, IE for isosbestic excitation, F for fluorescence, and S for the sample port on the cube's schematic. The separation of functional and isosbestic fluorescence signals of GCaMP is possible with modulated light sources.
Compared to Fluorescence Mini Cubes with only FC connectors on all ports, the ones with integrated photodetectors provide a 100% better signal-to-noise ratio (30% signal increase and a 40% noise reduction).
Moreover, in the latest generation of Mini Cubes, LEDs and LED drivers are integrated as well to reduce the number of connections and the system’s overall footprint. In his generation, it is also possible to replace the excitation filter and decrease the excitation power by adding attenuating filters (for low power photometry).
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Dual excitation band fiber photometry measurements use a Fluorescence Mini Cube with 4 ports: one port for the functional fluorescence excitation light, one for the isosbestic excitation, one for the fluorescence detection, and one for the sample.
The cube has dichroic mirrors to combine isosbestic and fluorescence excitations and separate the fluorescence emission and narrow bandpass filters limiting the excitation fluorescence spectrum.
Compared to Fluorescence Mini Cubes with only FC connectors on all ports, the ones with integrated photodetectors provide a 100% better signal-to-noise ratio : 30% signal increase and a 40% noise reduction
Doric Fluorescence Minicubes are compatible with several third-party systems; however, it is important to select the appropriate version for your setup.
For example, the pyPhotometry system requires different minicube generations depending on the board version:
- pyPhotometry V1 (original version): requires Doric ilFMC Gen 2 without LED adjustment ring
- pyPhotometry V2 (released in 2025): includes a BNC control voltage output for LEDs and is compatible with Doric ilFMC Gen 3
Please ensure you select the correct minicube generation to match your hardware configuration.
| Mini Cube | |
|---|---|
| Wavelength range | 350 to 1100 nm |
| Optical fiber compatibility | - Core diameter 200 or 400 µm - NA 0.37 to 0.57 |
| Spectral bandwidth | GCaMP : - Isosbestic Excitation 400-410 nm or 410-420 nm or 421-433 nm or 433-445 nm - Excitation 460-490 nm - Emission 500-550 nm |
| Optical filter attenuation | > OD 5 outside band |
| Dimensions | - FMC: 69 x 59 x 26 mm - iFMC: 76 x 82 x 50 mm - ilFMC: 107 x 109 x 52 mm |
| Built-in Detectors | iFMC | ilFMC |
|---|---|---|
| Detector Sensitivity | - 0.38 A/W @ 550 nm - 0.60 A/W @ 960 nm (peak) | - 0.38 A/W @ 550 nm - 0.60 A/W @ 960 nm (peak) |
| Amplification | 3 levels : 1x, 10x, 100x | 2levels : 1x, 10x |
| Transimpedance gain | - 2.0 E09 V / A (1x) - 2.0 E10 V / A (10x) - 2.0 E11 V / A (100x) | - 2.0 E09 V / A (1x) - 2.0 E10 V / A (10x) |
| Conversion gain @ 550 nm | - 0.76 V / nW (1x) - 7.60 V / nW (10x) - 76.0 V / nW (100x) | - 0.76 V / nW (1x) - 7.60 V / nW (10x) |
| Saturation level @ 550 nm | - 7.2 nW (1x) - 0.72 nW (10x) - 72 pW (100x) | - 7.2 nW (1x) - 0.72 nW (10x) |
| NEP | < 12 fW/√Hz | < 12 fW/√Hz |
| Bandwidth | - DC : 0 - 1000 Hz - AC : 30 - 1000 Hz | - DC : 0 - 1000 Hz - AC : 30 - 1000 Hz |
| Electrical interface | BNC | BNC |
| Output Voltage | 0.0 to 5.5 V | 0.0 to 5.5 V |
| Output impedance | 50 Ω | 50 Ω |
| Sensor type | Silicon photodiode | Silicon photodiode |
| Sensor Area | 1 x 1 mm | 1 x 1 mm |
| Input voltage | 12 V DC (power supply included) | 12 V DC (power supply included) |
| Built-in LEDs (ilFMC Gen.3) | |
| Max Current | 500 mA |
| Emitter size | 400 µm diameter - NA0.22 |
| Max Output Power (fibre 400 µm) | LED 400-410 nm = 60µW (at 200 mA, CW)* |
| LED 460-490 nm = 100 µW (at 200 mA, CW)* | |