PRESS RELEASE – APOLLO - Direct Electron

PRESS RELEASE – APOLLO

DIRECT ELECTRON INTRODUCES APOLLO

THE WORLD’S FIRST EVENT-BASED CAMERA FOR HIGH THROUGHPUT CRYO-EM

San Diego, CA (USA), March 1, 2021 – Direct Electron, a leading producer of next-generation direct detection cameras for transmission electron microscopes (TEM), today announces Apollo, a revolutionary new event-based direct detection camera for electron cryo-microscopy (cryo-EM). Based on a next generation sensor and camera architecture delivering electron counting in hardware, Apollo is the highest throughput direct detector for cryo-EM.

Apollo represents a completely new approach to electron counting. Rather than the brute force software-based approach implemented in existing counting cameras, Apollo performs electron counting by identifying electron detection events on the sensor, processing each event in edge computing FPGA hardware, and generating super-resolution (67 megapixel) frames at extremely high-speed that are optimized for downstream cryo-EM image processing before they leave the camera.

Apollo’s new approach of ultra-fast on-chip electron counting delivers a dramatic improvement in quality and speed, enabling counting with up to 10x higher beam brightness, and thus a 10x shorter exposure time than previous generation direct detectors.

Combining Apollo’s speed with its excellent signal-to-noise performance, Apollo can operate over an extremely wide range of dose-rates. This introduces a paradigm-shift for cryo-EM by enabling users, for the first time, to setup their experiments based on the optimal conditions for their TEM column, their specimen, or their method. The resulting advances in both imaging conditions and data throughput promise to profoundly increase the productivity of cryo-EM facilities and accelerate solutions in structural biology, drug discovery, and protein analysis.

Dr. Benjamin Bammes, Director of Research and Development at Direct Electron, said, “After more than eight years of active research and development, we are excited to be announcing Apollo. We designed this new sensor from the ground up, rethinking how electron counting is performed on direct detectors. Our lengthy experience in designing custom ultra-low noise direct detectors, together with feedback from leaders in the cryo-EM community, were instrumental in guiding this ambitious project. The result is extraordinary, an elegant electron counting camera that not only delivers incredible performance, but does so at a reduced total system cost.”

Dr. Robert Glaeser, Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology at University of California, Berkeley, said, “I am thrilled to hear about this new camera. Performing electron counting in hardware represents a significant advance in CMOS camera technology. The resulting linearity and low noise of the Apollo camera, along with its larger pixel size, is a very smart, well-optimized design. I expect this technology to have a major impact on future applications of cryo-EM.”

Apollo is expected to drive higher throughput and overall productivity for high-resolution single particle (SPA) cryo-EM, as well as enable future applications such as high-throughput continuous-rotation cellular tomography.

Apollo is integrated in SerialEM and other cryo-EM automation software packages and is compatible with all popular cryo-EM columns.

Apollo is available to order immediately, with delivery for orders placed now expected within the second quarter (Q2) of this year.

What’s New

AUTONOMOUS MICROED WITH APOLLO: BETTER DATA, FASTER

Apollo collected nine MicroED datasets in under 30 minutes at 8× the rotation rate of CETA-D—with lower R factors at room temperature, too!

Direct Electron at IMC21 in Liverpool

Catch up with Direct Electron at IMC21 Direct Electron Applications Scientist Dr. Barnaby Levin will

Direct Electron at M&M 2026!

Direct Electron is excited to attend Microscopy & Microanalysis 2026, the premier annual meeting for

M&M 2026 RUN GROUP

RUN WITH US AT M&M 2026! Make the most of your M&M experience with Direct

HIGH-THROUGHPUT CRYO-EM WITH APOLLO

Up to 2,904 movies per hour and sustained 1,820 movies per hour, reconstructing apoferritin at 1.72 Å in a single afternoon.

Direct Electron at IMC21 in Liverpool

Catch up with Direct Electron at IMC21 Direct Electron Applications Scientist Dr. Barnaby Levin will be presenting three contributions highlighting advances in direct detection and new approaches to data collection across several microscopy applications: Advances in MAPS Direct Detector Technology for EBSD, TKD, LEEM and PEEMMonday, August 31 | Surface Sensitive Microscopy, Analysis and Sample Manipulation | 10:35 AM–12:20 PM A Rapid Electron Counting Detector and GPU Powered Software for In Situ TEMTuesday, September 1 | Poster Session 2 | 5:30–6:30 PM Accelerating In Situ 4D STEM by Combining Custom Scan Patterns and Hardware Drift CorrectionWednesday, September 2 | Innovating Microscopy End-to-End: Hardware, Automation, and AI in Honour of Albert Crewe | 1:40–3:25 PM Direct Electron Cameras in Research at IMC21 We’re also excited to see work from researchers using Direct Electron cameras represented throughout the IMC21 scientific program. Prof. David Bhella, Professor of Structural Virology and Director of the Scottish Centre for Macromolecular Imaging at the University of Glasgow, will present “Frozen in Time: Cryo-EM Reveals Both Conserved and Novel Structural Features in a Divergent Herpesvirus Lineage,” featuring work with the Apollo direct electron detector, during the Cryo-EM session on Tuesday, September 1. Additional work from Bhella and colleagues will be presented during Wednesday’s poster session, including “Revealing the Native Architecture of RSV Replication Complexes Through In-Situ Structural Biology” and “Conformational Analysis of the Measles Virus Nucleocapsid Using Cryo-EM and Molecular Dynamics.” Researchers from the Max Planck Institute will also present several contributions featuring work with the DE-16, spanning ultrafast electron microscopy and diffraction: Steady-State Operando Imaging and Laser-Driven Megahertz Cycling of Ultrafast Charge-Density Wave Phase Transitions — Till Domröse Ultrafast Nanobeam Electron Diffraction of Structural Phase Transformations in 2D Materials — Sophie F. Schaible Stimulated Inelastic Electron Holography — Tim Dauwe Ultrafast Electron Microscopy and Free-Electron Quantum Optics — Claus Ropers, invited presentation We’re proud to see Direct Electron technology supporting such a diverse range of microscopy research and look forward to hearing the results in Liverpool. Going to IMC21? Stop by Booth 253 and say hello. We look forward to seeing you there!

Direct Electron at M&M 2026!

Direct Electron is excited to attend Microscopy & Microanalysis 2026, the premier annual meeting for the microscopy community, taking place August 2–6, 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. We invite attendees to stop by Booth 1130 to explore our latest direct detection technologies and discover the right detector for their application. Visit us to learn more about our flagship Apollo and Celeritas direct detection cameras, as well as our newest detector solutions designed for cryo-EM, SEM, 4D-STEM, EBSD, TKD, LEEM, and PEEM applications. Looking to start your mornings with fellow attendees? Join the conference’s informal morning run/walk, organized by Direct Electron Sales Director Bob Monteverde and MSA member Janet Gbur. The group meets Monday through Thursday at 6:00 AM outside the Baird Center main entrance (400 W. Wisconsin Avenue) for runs of 2–4 miles or a 1-mile walk. We look forward to seeing you in Milwaukee and discussing how Direct Electron can help advance your research.