Device for the thermal treatment of test samples

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11732973-B2
Application number	US-201916704743-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 5, 2019
Priority date	Dec 7, 2018
Publication date	Aug 22, 2023
Grant date	Aug 22, 2023

Abstract

A device for the thermal treatment of test samples is presented. The device comprises a sample holder and one or more thermoelectric elements which are in thermal contact with the sample holder. The sample holder comprises at least two holding positions configured to hold test sample consumables. The sample holder comprises an internal working fluid and a hollow body with an inner bottom surface and an inner top surface connected to each other with a pillar. The pillar extends along a vertical axis perpendicular to the inner bottom surface and substantially in the middle of the distance between the at least two holding positions. A laboratory instrument and a method for the thermal treatment of test samples is also presented.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A device for the thermal treatment of test samples comprising a sample holder and one or more thermoelectric elements, wherein the sample holder comprises a hollow body with an inner bottom surface and an inner top surface opposite to each other, wherein the hollow body comprises an internal working fluid, wherein the sample holder further comprises an outer top surface parallel to the inner top surface, wherein the inner bottom surface and the inner top surface are connected to each other with at least one pillar extending along a vertical axis perpendicular to the inner bottom surface, wherein the outer top surface comprises at least two holding positions each configured to hold a test sample consumable or a part of a test sample consumable, wherein the vertical axis is substantially in the middle of the distance between the at least two holding positions, wherein the one or more thermoelectric element are in thermal contact with the hollow body, wherein the outer top surface comprises a recess at each of the at least two holding positions, wherein each recess is configured to receive, accommodate, and release a test sample consumable or a part of a test sample consumable in a manner that heat exchange between the sample holder and the test sample consumable can be facilitated, and wherein the at least one pillar is positioned such that it is offset from each of the recesses.

2. A device for the thermal treatment of test samples according to claim 1 , wherein the pillar comprises a wick structure.

3. A device for the thermal treatment of test samples according to claim 2 , wherein the wick structure is a porous structure.

4. A device for the thermal treatment of test samples according to claim 3 , wherein the porous structure is made of sintered metal or sintered alloy.

5. A device for the thermal treatment of test samples according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one pillar is an assembly of two or more sub-pillars, wherein the inner bottom surface and the inner top surface of the hollow body are connected to each other by each sub-pillar of the assembly, wherein the assembly comprises a horizontal circumference and a further vertical axis perpendicular to the inner bottom surface and in the center of the horizontal circumference, wherein the sub-pillars are arranged within or along the horizontal circumference of the assembly, wherein the further vertical axis is aligned with the vertical axis.

6. A device for the thermal treatment of test samples according to claim 1 , wherein the hollow body is made of a first metal, first sintered metal, first alloy, or first sintered alloy, wherein the pillar is made of a second metal, second sintered metal, second alloy, or second sintered alloy, wherein the first metal, first sintered metal, first alloy, or first sintered alloy and the second metal, second sintered metal, second alloy, or second sintered alloy are the same or different.

7. A device for the thermal treatment of test samples according to claim 1 , wherein the device further comprises a heat sink which is in thermal contact with the one or more thermoelectric elements.

8. A device for the thermal treatment of test samples according to claim 7 , wherein the heat sink is a further hollow body.

9. A device for the thermal treatment of test samples according to claim 1 , wherein the outer top surface is comprised by the hollow body, wherein the shape of the inner top surface is adapted to the outer top surface.

10. A device for the thermal treatment of test samples according to claim 1 , wherein the sample holder further comprises a thermal block, wherein the outer top surface is comprised by the thermal block, wherein the hollow body is substantially planar, wherein the thermal block is located on the hollow body.

11. A device for the thermal treatment of test samples according to claim 1 , wherein the hollow body and the pillar consist of one single piece, wherein said single piece is a 3D printing product.

12. A laboratory instrument for performing thermal treatment of test samples comprising a device according to claim 1 and a control device, wherein the control device is configured to control the one or more thermoelectric elements in order to heat or cool the sample holder.

13. A laboratory instrument according to claim 12 , wherein the laboratory instrument further comprises a light source configured to emit light towards the at least two holding positions and a detector configured to detect light emitted from the at least two holding positions.

14. A method of performing thermal treatment on test samples in a device according to claim 1 , comprising exposing a test sample to one or more predefined temperatures by operating the one or more thermoelectric elements, wherein the test sample is in a test sample consumable held by one of the at least two sample holding positions.

15. A method of performing thermal treatment on test samples in a device according to claim 12 , comprising exposing a test sample to one or more predefined temperatures by operating the one or more thermoelectric elements, wherein the test sample is in a test sample consumable held by one of the at least two sample holding positions.

Assignees

• Roche Molecular Systems Inc

Inventors

• Zeller Philipp
• Ebert Sven
• Vollenweider Stefan

Classifications

• H10W40/73

  for cooling by change of state · CPC title

• H10W40/28

  comprising Peltier coolers · CPC title

• F28D15/0233 Primary

  the conduits having a particular shape, e.g. non-circular cross-section, annular (F28D15/0241, F28D15/0266 take precedence) · CPC title

• B01L7/52

  with provision for submitting samples to a predetermined sequence of different temperatures, e.g. for treating nucleic acid samples · CPC title

• H01L23/38

  Electricity · mapped topic