Nanoindentation measurements of soft samples like gels, tissues, or organoids are enabled by a Chiaro Nanoindenter from Optics11. The nanoindenter is mounted on a Zeiss Axiovert 200M fluorescence microscope, which enables simultaneous imaging of the probed sample. Material properties like the quasi-static Young's modulus or dynamic loss and storage modulus can be measured.
Instrument configuration
Sample Young’s modulus | Advised cantilever stiffness |
10 Pa – 18 kPa | 0.025 N/m |
100 Pa – 180 kPa | 0.25 N/m |
2 kPa – 3.6 MPa | 5 N/m |
18 kPa – 36 MPa | 50 N/m |
89 kPa – 180 MPa | 250 N/m |
Radius | Stiffness | Thickness of probe |
3 um | 0.025 N/m | thick / thin |
10 um | 0.025 N/m | thin |
10 um | 0.5 N/m | thick / thin |
10 um | 5 N/m | thick |
25 um | 0.025 N/m | thick / thin |
50 um | 0.025 N/m | thick |
See LMF website for more information on the optics of the microscope (W4).