Quartz 10mm Micro Volume Cuvette, 0.35 ml, Standard 80, Two-Way Light, Stopper Cap, 1pc/ea, C102CS32

Description

Why PTFE Stopper?

The PTFE stopper provides a secure, chemical-resistant seal that prevents solvent evaporation and protects samples from atmospheric contamination. PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) is inert to virtually all laboratory chemicals, making this stopper suitable for use with aqueous buffers, mild organic solvents, and air-sensitive samples. The stopper enables safe inversion for gentle mixing without leaks, and maintains stable sample concentrations during extended kinetic measurements where even minor evaporation would compromise results.

Applications

Why Micro Volume?

Internal quartz masking walls narrow the measurement chamber to ~1 mm while maintaining the full 10 mm optical path (Beer–Lambert law: A = εlc). This saves 90% of sample compared to a standard 3.5 ml cuvette, making it ideal for precious biological samples, expensive reagents, or limited column fractions. Unlike ultra-micro cuvettes with raised platforms, the micro volume design keeps the sample at full column height — compatible with all spectrophotometer beam heights (8.5 mm, 15 mm, or 20 mm) without verification.

Black-Wall Design Benefits

This cuvette features a black-wall (dark-wall) exterior on the two non-optical faces. The opaque coating absorbs stray ambient light and eliminates fluorescence interference from scattered excitation photons bouncing off internal walls. Benefits include: reduced stray-light artifacts at low absorbance readings, improved signal-to-noise in fluorescence measurements, cleaner baselines in the deep-UV region (<230 nm) where scattered light is most problematic, and sharper spectral resolution in high-sensitivity absorbance work. If your application does not require lateral light transmission (excitation/emission at 90°), the black-wall two-way configuration delivers measurably better optical performance than an all-clear four-way cuvette.

Why Standard 80 Construction?

Standard 80 refers to precision-glued assembly: individual quartz panels bonded with optical-grade adhesive, then ground and polished to final dimensions. With >80% transmittance across 190–2500 nm, Standard 80 delivers accurate, reproducible results for routine UV-Vis work — DNA/protein quantification, enzyme kinetics, and pharmaceutical analysis. Important: the adhesive bonds are designed for aqueous samples only (water, buffers, dilute salt solutions). Organic solvents, strong acids, strong bases, and corrosive reagents can attack and degrade the adhesive joints. For work with organic solvents or aggressive chemicals, choose Sintered 83 or Molded 83 instead.