TFS Arctis Cryo-Plasma FIB

Left: Arctis cryo-plasma focussed ion beam (PFIB) scanning electron microscope (SEM); Right: SEM images of lamellae milled by xenon (top, target thickness of 150, 175 and 200 nm) and argon (bottom, arget thickness of 200 nm) PFIB, for cryo-frozen baker’s yeast cells using Arctis WebUI conventional lamella workflow’s optimized templates.

Typical applications

The ThermoFisher Scientific Arctis cryo-plasma focussed ion beam (cryo-PFIB) is a state-of-the-art dual-beam FIB-scanning electron microscope (SEM) specifically engineered for preparing frozen hydrated cellular samples for cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET). It is ideally suited for producing thin lamellae for an automated cryo-ET workflow, due to its high-precision, reproducibility and high-throughput capabilities. This system leverages an advanced plasma ion source, offering versatile milling with xenon, argon, or oxygen ions, ensuring rapid and precise material removal without gallium contamination. A key feature is its integrated fluorescence microscopy (iFLM) correlative system, allowing in-situ fluorescence imaging directly on the cryo-sample, reducing transfer steps and minimizing ice contamination. Together, these steps significantly boost the efficiency of cryo-correlative light and electron microscopy (CLEM) pipeline. The Arctis cryo-PFIB includes an  autoloader system that can handle up to 12 cryogenically frozen grids, minimizing manual intervention and ensuring consistent lamella alignment.

Technical specifications

Electron Optics

Source: High-stability Schottky field emission gun;
Beam Current: 1.5 pA to 400 nA;
Accelerating Voltage: 0.2 kV to 30 kV;
Detectors: In-lens detection system: T1 (BSE) and T2 (SE); In-chamber ETD (SE)
Resolution (T2): <2.6 nm at 2 kV
Ion Optics

Source: PFIB with inductively coupled plasma (ICP) source;
Ion Species: Xenon, Argon and Oxygen;
Beam Current: 1.5 pA to 2.5 µA;
Accelerating Voltage: 0.5 kV to 30 kV;
Resolution (Xe+ beam): <20 nm at 30 kV
Integrated Fluorescence Microscopy (iFLM)

Type: Wide-field fluorescence light microscope;
Objective: 100x Zeiss Epiplan Neofluar NA 0.75;
Working Distance: 4 mm;
Modes: Fluorescence and Reflection;
Filters: 4-channel Quadband (DAPI, FITC, TRITC and Cy5 optimized);
Camera: Basler a2A4504-18umPRO (20.2 MP resolution);
LED Source: CoolLED, 4 channels (365 nm/450 nm/550 nm/ 635 nm)
Vacuum System

Nitrogen-cooled Autoloader and CompuStage with dedicated cryo-box for shielding against water condensation;
Vacuum chamber pressure: <5 × 10-5 Pa (at cryo-conditions)
Sample Stage

CompuStage; computerized 4-axis cryo-stage with ±90-degree alpha tilt;
Eucentric point: 10 mm from electron column pole piece
Autoloader Capacity

Up to 12 cryogenically frozen grid carriers (compatible with TomoGrids, AutoGrids, FIB-AutoGrids)
Softwares

Web-Based User Interface (WebUI): remote operation;
xT Microscope Control: works in conjunction with the WebUI;
AutoTEM Cryo2.4;
Maps3.25