Abstract: A thermogenerator arrangement is provided. The thermogenerator arrangement comprising an electrically operable device, switching means by means of which the device can be switched from a first, energy-saving state to a second, active state and at least one thermogenerator which generates an electrical signal when there is a temperature change in its environment, which electrical signal is forwarded to the switching means. The switching means are formed such that switching the device from the first state to the second state is effected in dependence on the electrical signal of the thermogenerator.

Abstract: A novel optical ruler based on ultrahigh-resolution colocalization of single fluorescent probes is described. Two unique families of fluorophores are used, namely energy-transfer fluorescent beads and semiconductor nanocrystal (NC) quantum dots, that can be excited by a single laser wavelength but emit at different wavelengths. A novel multicolor sample-scanning confocal microscope was constructed which allows one to image each fluorescent light emitter, free of chromatic aberrations, by scanning the sample with nanometer scale steps using a piezo-scanner. The resulting spots are accurately localized by fitting them to the known shape of the excitation point-spread-function of the microscope.