Bibby Scientific’s Techne brand covers a wide variety of scientific instruments including two different gradient thermal cycler units. The range includes a full size unit (the TC-5000) and a smaller personal thermal cycler (the TC-3000G).

The TC-5000 is a thermal cycler which is available in models compatible with 96 or 384 well plates. A versatile, easy to use block system allows changing blocks quickly without tools.  The cycler includes a gradient calculator function which displays the temperature of each column of tubes for reproducibility.

Features of the Bibby Scientific Techne TC-5000 include:

• 4°C to 99°C temperature range
• 8 Peltier units per block with 4 independent temperature control sensors
• Programmable, defined pressure heated lid (100°C to 115°C) which is suitable for use with a wide range of consumables; heated lid only activates when block is set above 35°C
• The TC-5000’s gradient thermal cycler features a 115mm x 90mm user-friendly touch screen and graphical display for real time visualization and monitoring
• Incremental time and temperature for Touchdown PCR and other applications
• Unit connects to PCs and other Techne cyclers for high throughput applications with Gensoft software
• maximum heating rate  3°C/sec, block uniformity of ±0.3°C at 50°C with or without gradient

The TC-3000G is the world’s smallest thermal cycler, holding half of a 96-well plate horizontally. This allows the unit to use eight columns for annealing temperature optimization (over a 15°C gradient between 20 and 80 °C ) and six rows for optimizing reagents and primer concentrations.

Features of the TC-3000G gradient thermal cycler include:

• 3.3°C/sec heating ramp rate; 2.0°C/sec cooling rate thanks to the latest generation of Peltier technology
• Gradient of up to 15°C between 20 and 80°C allows for optimization of a variety of protocols within one experiment
• Adjustable heated lid can be configured for use with 48-well plates (sealed with sealing mats) PCR tubes and strip tubes
• Intuitive, user friendly programming with premade templates for simple creation of complex protocols
• Can be linked with as many as 32 other Techne cyclers and networked to an external PC
• TC-3000G gradient thermal cycler includes gradient calculator for easy replication and reproducibility