Microplate heater for providing uniform heating regardless of the geometry of the microplates
First Claim
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1. A temperature control apparatus for controlling the temperature of a microplate containing a plurality of microwells, the apparatus comprising:
- a thermal energy source; and
means for transferring thermal energy from the thermal energy source to the microplate, said means being adaptable to engage microplates of varying shapes such that thermal energy is transferred substantially only to the bottom surfaces of the microwells and is transferred at substantially the same rate to microwells disposed in the interior of the microplate as it is transferred to microwells disposed on the periphery of the microplate.
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Abstract
A heater which accommodates microwell plates having a variety of bottom and peripheral geometries. The heater consists of a thermally conductive compliant material layer disposed on a planar heated platen. The compliant layer is dimensioned such that it contacts the microplate along the bottoms of the wells only, and not along the peripheral portions thereof. A temperature sensor may be disposed within the compliant layer to provide an indication of the well temperature for accurate control.
126 Citations
18 Claims
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1. A temperature control apparatus for controlling the temperature of a microplate containing a plurality of microwells, the apparatus comprising:
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a thermal energy source; and means for transferring thermal energy from the thermal energy source to the microplate, said means being adaptable to engage microplates of varying shapes such that thermal energy is transferred substantially only to the bottom surfaces of the microwells and is transferred at substantially the same rate to microwells disposed in the interior of the microplate as it is transferred to microwells disposed on the periphery of the microplate. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An apparatus for heating a microplate, the microplate containing an array of regularly spaced microwells, the apparatus comprising:
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a heating platen having a planar surface; and a thermally conductive compliant and resilient layer, disposed on the planar surface of the heating platen, for adaptively receiving microplates whose bottom surfaces have varying geometries, said layer dimensioned such that heat from said platen is transferred substantially only to the bottoms of said microwells. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method of heating an array of wells for holding samples, the wells being formed in a microplate, the method comprising the steps of:
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heating a compliant thermally conductive layer; and engaging the microplate with said compliant layer, such that only the bottoms of the wells physically contact said layer and heat is transferred at substantially the same rate to each of said well bottoms. - View Dependent Claims (18)
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Specification