The patch-clamping technique is an extremely powerful and versatile method for studying electrophysiological properties of biological membranes. It allows the recordings of macroscopic whole-cell or microscopic single-channel currents flowing across biological membrane. Soon after its development by Erwin Neher and Bert Sakmann (jointed winners of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for 1991) in 1976, it has been adopted by numerous laboratories and subsequently caused a revolutionary advancement of many research areas in both cellular and molecular biology.

There are the links to different manufacturers that provide the essential equipment for a patch clamp setup. Our lab has the experience in using almost all of those equipment.

Vibration Isolation Table: Newport; Technical Manufacturing Corp.

Microscopy (upright or invert): Nikon; Olympus; Zesis; Leica

Microscopy Translator and Isolating Platform: Burleigh; Sutter Instrument Company

Patch-clamp amplifiers: Axon Instruments Inc; Heka;

Micromanipulators: hydraulic: Narishige; Newport
motorized: Newport; Siskiyou Design Instruments
peizoelectric: Burleigh; Sutter Instrument Company

Microelectrode Puller and Microforges: Narishige; Sutter Instrument Company

Microelectrode holders and accessories: Axon Instruments Inc ; Warner Instruments Corp.

Pulse Generator: A.M.P. Instrument; Cygnus Technology, Inc

Oscilloscope: Tektronix; Gould Instrument system

CCD for Microscopy: Hamamatsu

Glass Capillaries: VWR; Harvard Apparatus; World Precision Instruments

AD/DA Converter for Computer: Axon Instruments

Data Acquisition and Analysis Software: Axon Pclamp; Axon Axoscope (free); Whole-cell recording Program (free, by J. Dempster, Univ. Starthclyde, UK); MiniAnalysis; Origin; SigmaPlot; DataWave CP Analysis;

....and more homemade equipment.

The patch-clamp setups vary among different laboratories, reflecting the diversity of experimental requirement or the foibles of the experimenter. Basically, a patch-clamp setup has four main requirements:
(1) Environment: the means of keeping the preparation healthy;
(2) Optics: the means of visualizing the preparation;
(3) Mechanics: a mean of stably positioning the microelectrode; and
(4) Electronic: a mean of amplifying and recording the signal.