Asylum's Cypher Atomic Force Microscope Awarded R+D100 Award for 2009

Asylum Research and R+D Magazine have announced that Asylum's Cypher Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) has been awarded the R+D100 Award for 2009. Cypher is the first completely new small sample AFM/SPM in over a decade and is the world's highest resolution AFM.

The Cypher AFM achieves closed loop atomic resolution using sensors in all three axes, combining the accuracy and control of closed loop with atomic resolution for the most accurate images and measurements possible today. In addition to its superior capabilities for imaging and measurement, Cypher breaks down ease-of-use barriers with its exclusive point-and-click SpotOnTM automated laser and photodetector alignment. Additional unique capabilities include interchangeable light source modules that allow laser spot sizes down to 3um for broad application and scan mode flexibility, and support for high-speed AC imaging (>10x faster) with cantilevers smaller than 10um. The system also includes an integrated enclosure which provides acoustic and vibration isolation, as well as excellent thermal control for image and measurement stability.

The winning of an R+D100 Award provides a mark of excellence known to industry, government, and academia as proof that the product is one of the most innovative of the year. Winners are selected by an independent judging panel of technology experts and the editors of R+D Magazine. The R+D100 award will be presented to Asylum Research's development team at an Awards Banquet in Orlando on November 12, 2009. Cypher has also been awarded Laboratory Equipment Magazine's 2009 Reader's Choice Award.

“The R+D100 Awards honor the latest technology developments that are designed to meet societal, scientific, or business challenges facing us today – and tomorrow,” said Rita Peters, editorial director of R+D Magazine.

“The new Cypher AFM is the result of years of engineering effort and sets the AFM/SPM bar to a new and much higher level. The entire system was designed from the ground up to provide superior capabilities and to generate the most accurate images and measurements possible. The R+D100 Award further validates our belief that the Cypher system outclasses anything else on the market today and will help our customers generate new discoveries in the nano-scale materials and biological sciences,” stated Dr. Mario Viani, Cypher Product Manager.

Added Asylum Research CEO, Dr. Jason Cleveland, “We are proud to have been awarded the R+D100 Award, the most prestigious in the high-tech industry. We've listened carefully to our customers and believe that the Cypher AFM meets or exceeds their requirements for today and has the modularity and expandability to support their future needs as well. Asylum's legendary support and applications team will continue to listen so that we can maintain our technology leadership into the future.”

About R+D Magazine and the R+D100 Award

Since its founding in 1959 as Industrial Research, R+D Magazine has served research scientists, engineers and technical staff at laboratories around the world, providing timely, informative news and useful technical articles that broaden readers' knowledge of the research and development industry and improve the quality of their work. R+D Magazine is a publication of Advantage Business Media (www.advantagebusinessmedia.com). Since 1963, the R+D 100 Awards have identified revolutionary technologies newly introduced to the market. Many of these have become household names, helping shape everyday life for many Americans. These include the flashcube (1965), the automated teller machine (1973), the halogen lamp (1974), the fax machine (1975), the liquid crystal display (1980), the printer (1986), the Kodak Photo CD (1991), the Nicoderm antismoking patch (1992), Taxol anticancer drug (1993), lab on a chip (1996), and HDTV (1998).