Products Home / Optical Tables, Breadboards, and Supports / Optical Breadboard Accessories / Sorbothane IsolatorsSorbothane Isolators
- Isolate Vibrations Created from Equipment and Acoustic Sources
- Useful for Uneven Surfaces
Sorbothane
Sheets
SB12A
1/8" (3.2 mm) Thick
SB12B
SB12C
1/4" (6.4 mm) Thick
1/2" (12.7 mm) Thick
Application Idea
AV4 Sorbothane Feet Supporting an Aluminum Breadboard
AV4
1/4"-20 Tapped
Vibration Absorbing Feet
Please Wait
Features
- Sorbothane® Provides Efficient Damping of Vibrations
- Mounting Feet Ideal for use with Aluminum Breadboards
- Sheets Ideal for Equipment or Other Items With Uneven Surfaces
Thorlabs’ Sorbothane Feet and Sheets offer excellent vibration and acoustic isolation for laboratory needs. Our Sorbothane feet offer internal 1/4"-20 (M6) threads or an adhesive surface, which can be used to attach the feet to the bases of test equipment or breadboards. For a more versatile option, Thorlabs also offers 12" × 12" (305 mm x 305 mm) Sorbothane sheets with 1/8" (3.2 mm), 1/4" (6.4 mm), or 1/2" (12.7 mm) thickness. These sheets are easily cut and can be adapted to suit a variety of custom applications.
For assistance in choosing the proper sorbothane isolator, please see the Feet Selection Guide and Sheet Cutting Guide tabs above.
Selecting the Proper Sorbothane Isolator Feet
The example presented here details the steps needed to ensure the proper selection of round sorbothane isolator feet to match the requirements of a particular load and problem frequency. Following the example are plots showing the amount of isolation achieved for our isolator feet. For specific isolation recommendations, please contact Tech Support.
Example
- Mass of the Breadboard (mb): 44 lbs
- Mass of Mounted Optics, Posts, Hardware, and Stages (me): 10 lbs
- Number of Isolators (n): 4
- Problem Frequency: Unknown
The round sorbothane feet's isolation graphs, shown below, use load per isolator (m) in lbs, which is given by the following equation:
Based on the values given above, the calculated load per isolator is 13.5 lbs. This value should then be looked up on each isolation graph for the round isolator feet below. Sorbothane feet with a calculated load per isolator that exceeds the maximum load are not suitable for the application. Without a known problem frequency, the isolator that effectively isolates at the lowest cut-on frequency is recommended.
For this example, the AV4(/M) or AV5(/M) sorbothane feet would both be acceptable solutions. The AV4 Ø27 mm isolator feet provide better isolation performance at lower frequencies but are near the load limit, so if the total load were higher than anticipated the isolator would be outside of the recommended load capacity. Our AV5 Ø38.1 mm isolator feet will have worse isolation performance at lower frequencies, but are well within the load range which may be preferable.
If a sorbothane sheet is preferred, it would need to be cut to an appropriate size as shown in the Sheet Cutting Guide tab. For a 13.5 lb (6.1 kg) load, a 0.5" (12.7 mm) thick sheet cut into 1.5" x 0.5" (38.1 mm x 12.7 mm) pieces would provide a good isolation solution.
Sorbothane Feet Isolation Plots
Click to Enlarge
The plot shown above shows the isolation efficiency per foot of the AV3 Sorbothane Isolator Feet. These isolators should not be used above the maximum load capacity of 6 lbs. Above this weight, the isolators will begin to amplify vibrations rather than damp them.
Click to Enlarge
The plot shown above shows the isolation efficiency per foot of the AV4(/M) Sorbothane Isolator Feet. These isolators should not be used above the maximum load capacity of 14 lbs. Above this weight, the isolators will begin to amplify vibrations rather than damp them.
Click to Enlarge
The plot shown above shows the isolation efficiency per foot of the AV5(/M) Sorbothane Isolator Feet. These isolators should not be used above the maximum load capacity of 33 lbs. Above this weight, the isolators will begin to amplify vibrations rather than damp them.
Click to Enlarge
The plot shown above shows the isolation efficiency per foot of the AV6(/M) Sorbothane Isolator Feet. These isolators should not be used above the maximum load capacity of 50 lbs. Above this weight, the isolators will begin to amplify vibrations rather than damp them.
| Key | Description |
|---|---|
| N/A | Load too Large |
| >100 Hz | Better Option is Available |
Sorbothane Sheet Cutting Guides
The tables below show the different sizes that a Sorbothane sheet should be cut down to for isolating certain frequencies. Within each table are minimum frequency values, meaning that at a specific size and load the isolator will effectively damp any frequency equal to or greater than what is given. Orange cells indicate areas where the specific isolator size and load should not be used. N/A indicates that the load is too great, whereas >100 Hz indicates that a better option is available (i.e., to isolate a frequency of 150 Hz, an isolator size that is effective from 50 Hz and up is a better choice than one that is effective from 100 Hz and up).
| 1/2" Thick Sorbothane Sheet Cutting Guide | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | ||||||||||||||||
| Width | 0.5" | 1.0" | 1.5" | 2.0" | ||||||||||||
| Length | 0.5" | 1.0" | 1.5" | 2.0" | 2.5" | 3.0" | 3.5" | 4.0" | 4.5" | 5.0" | 1.0" | 1.5" | 2.0" | 1.5" | 2.0" | |
| 1/4" Thick Sorbothane Sheet Cutting Guide | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | |||||||||
| Width | 0.5" | 1.0" | |||||||
| Length | 0.5" | 1.0" | 1.5" | 2.0" | 2.5" | 3.0" | 1.0" | 1.5" | |
| 1/8" Thick Sorbothane Sheet Cutting Guide | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | ||||||||
| Width | 0.5" | 0.75" | ||||||
| Length | 0.5" | 0.75" | 1.0" | 1.25" | 1.5" | 0.75" | 1.0" | |
| Posted Comments: | |
Evan Crowe
(posted 2024-10-28 16:12:28.787) For the sheet cutting guide, would a rectangular/square patch of equivalent area as the strip listed in the guide have the equivalent vibration isolation performance? I would like to do a 2"x3" patch but the strip width only is listed up to 1" for the thicker sheet sizes jdelia
(posted 2024-11-01 04:37:50.0) Thank you for contacting Thorlabs. We would not expect these to be equivalent based on area. I have reached out to you directly via email to discuss your application. Dan Ray
(posted 2024-09-09 01:55:06.577) Hi,
In term of stability/performances, is it possible to add a sorbothane feet like the AV5/M on top of a P75/M post? I am looking for a way to isolate a system from vibrations, and your damped post are too tall for that. spolineni
(posted 2024-09-12 07:36:20.0) Thank you for contacting us. I will get in touch with you directly to discuss the details of your requirement and assist you further. user
(posted 2024-03-24 15:37:34.95) What would the isolation frequencies be if you stacked multiple SB12C sheets? spolineni
(posted 2024-04-03 05:29:59.0) Thank you for reaching out to us. As you are aware stacking the Sorbothane sheets can alter the efficiency of vibration isolation, this will depend on the number of sheets and the net load. Feel free to reach out to your local tech support for more information on your specific application needs. peter newby
(posted 2022-08-02 15:59:33.963) unable to order due to cost of shipping , why you do not keep even one sheet in the uk is beyond me ,
the cost of shipping is nearly as mush as the product , jdelia
(posted 2022-08-04 11:28:15.0) Thank you for your feedback. We're sorry to hear you are unable to order this product due to the cost of shipping. We have limited warehousing and this product is made the US, not the UK. We can certainly put you in touch with our UK office to try and find a solution. Lee Tagney
(posted 2020-03-23 19:48:47.747) Do you have a Vibration Isolator like AV4 with threads at both ends? cwright
(posted 2020-03-24 04:09:40.0) Response from Charles at Thorlabs: Hello and thank you for your query. Unfortunately this is not something we can currently provide but we will make a note of this request and consider adding such an item to our range in the future. rpicazof
(posted 2019-01-16 13:04:45.32) Dear sir/ madam,
My name is Román Picazo PhD student at the Helmholtz Institut Mainz in Mainz, Germany. I am not sure how to "read" the sorbothane Isolators sheets table for my application. I have a setup that weights ~40-50 kgs, and I would like to buy isolation sheets to protect against vibrations from the ground (I cannot use feet).
My idea was to cut pieces and stick them to my breadbroad (600x900x50 mm), but I am not sure how many pieces, how large and where to put them, could you advice me on this? Thank you!
PS: It would be extremely useful for the reader if the sheets table were in metric units as well. bhallewell
(posted 2019-01-17 09:10:22.0) Response from Ben at Thorlabs: Thank you for your feedback. I'd recommend taking a look at the "Feet Selection Guide" tab which can also be applied to this table. A breadboard of this size you could estimate to be around 70kg. If you were to cut 4 separate sheets under the breadboard, with one sheet in each corner, the distributed load would be ~17.5kg per isolator. You would then check across the list at the lowest frequency that can be isolated at this load per isolator. Based on this you would want to consider 1/2" thick Sorbothane sheets cut into 0.5" x 2" strips isolating from frequencies of 25Hz-30Hz upwards. rms344
(posted 2017-04-06 13:31:45.487) Is the AV6 available with threaded studs on both ends? jlow
(posted 2017-04-17 11:29:59.0) Response from Jeremy at Thorlabs: We can provide many custom solutions to the Sorbothane feet. We will contact you directly about this. user
(posted 2017-01-19 15:03:24.987) Is this material electrically conductive or is will it act as an insulator? tfrisch
(posted 2017-01-20 11:31:46.0) Hello, thank you for contacting Thorlabs. While we don't have any electrical specs for Sorbothane, it would behave as an insulator. kri.tifr
(posted 2016-09-12 17:34:53.56) Hi,
I have a question regarding the sorbothane sheet cutting table. The length units are shown in inches. Should they be in ft instead?
Thanks,...Raj tcampbell
(posted 2016-09-13 09:01:04.0) Response from Tim at Thorlabs: Thank you for your question. The sheet cutting guide tables are correct. They are meant to serve as a guide for cutting our 12" x 12" Sorbothane sheets down to smaller sizes. lixue.wu
(posted 2016-08-17 14:49:06.337) I cannot find Sheet Selection Guide for SB12B. That tab is not there.
Thanks.
Lixue mjburek
(posted 2015-07-28 12:37:55.17) Is it possible to have sheets which come in 18"x18" squares as well? We have many laser heads mounted on 12"18" and 18"x18" breadboards and would like to have a continuous vibration isolation sheet underneath. msoulby
(posted 2015-07-29 10:21:38.0) Response from Mike at Thorlabs: It is possible to use several of the standard SB12C sheets to tile the area that you need to cover. This would be more cost effective than having a custom one off size manufactured. |
Zoom
- Four Size Options Available for Benchtop Vibration Isolation
- Available Mounting Options:
- 1/4"-20 (M6) Tapped to Directly Attach to a Breadboard
- Adhesive Mounting Surface to Directly Attach to Untapped Surfaces
- Supplied as Set of Four
- Use Extra Feet to Increase Load Capacity
These Sorbothane mounting feet provide a passive isolation solution for workbench-mounted breadboards, effectively isolating noisy equipment from the optical table or breadboard surface. Unlike our pneumatic benchtop isolation solutions, these solid Sorbothane feet do not require inflation.
The AV4(/M), AV5(/M), and AV6(/M) mounting feet each contain internal 1/4"-20 (M6) threading and include four 1/4"-20 (M6) threaded setscrews. In contrast, the AV3 mounting feet are not threaded, and are attached to equipment or breadboards using the included double-sided tape. See the table below for the load capacities and dimensions of each isolator. When choosing an isolator, we recommend picking the isolator that offers the largest range of damped frequencies for the specific load being used. For further assistance in choosing the proper sorbothane isolator, please see the Feet Selection Guide tab above.
Please note that these feet may have silicon residue on their surface from the molding process. To remove the residue, wipe the feet down with an alcohol-based solvent such as isopropyl alcohol (IPA). To protect the work surface from this residue, please see our SB12E Adhesive Felt Sheets below.
| Item # | AV3 | AV4(/M) | AV5(/M) | AV6(/M) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Load Rangea (Per Foot) |
3 to 6 lbs (1.4 to 2.7 kg) |
3 to 14 lbs (1.4 to 6.4 kg) |
3 to 33 lbs (1.4 to 15.0 kg) |
3 to 50 lbs (1.4 to 22.7 kg) |
| Isolator Efficiency (Click to View) |
|
|
|
|
| Hardnessb | 70 Durometer | 70 Durometer | 70 Durometer | 70 Durometer |
| Dimensions | Ø0.71" x 1.00" (Ø18.0 mm x 25.4 mm) |
Ø1.06" x 1.00" (Ø27.0 mm x 25.4 mm) |
Ø1.50" x 1.00" (Ø38.1 mm x 25.4 mm) |
Ø1.77" x 1.00" (Ø45.0 mm x 25.4 mm) |
| Mounting | Double-Sided Tape | Internal 1/4"-20 (M6) Threadsc,d | Internal 1/4"-20 (M6) Threadsc,d | Internal 1/4"-20 (M6) Threadsc,d |
Zoom- 12" x 12" (305 mm x 305 mm) Sheet Size with 1/8" (3.2 mm), 1/4" (6.4 mm), or 1/2" (12.7 mm) Thickness
- Easy to Cut and Shape for Multiple Uses
- Hardness: 70 Durometer (Measured Using the Shore "00" Scale)
These pliable Sorbothane Sheets are ideal for isolating mechanical noise or vibrations. The sheets come in three thicknesses and can be placed under a breadboard in single or stacked layers to counter the effects of uneven work surfaces or to isolate the breadboard from vibrations. For objects over 5 lbs (approx. 2.2 kg), the thicker 1/4" (SB12B) or 1/2" (SB12C) sheets are recommended. For information on the isolation efficiency of these sheets at specific load capacities, please see the Sheet Cutting Guide tab above.
Sorbothane sheets can be cut to size using scissors or a utility knife. Please contact Technical Support to request Sorbothane sheets with a lower hardness.
Zoom- 12" x 12" (305 mm x 305 mm) Adhesive Sheets
- SB12D: Two-Sided Adhesive Sheet for Semi-Permanent Setups
- SB12E: One-Sided Adhesive Sheet with Felt Backing to Prevent Surface Marring from Sorbothane
- Sheets Sized for Compatiblity with Sorbothane Sheets (Sold Above)
- Can be Cut to Size for Use with Sorbothane Feet
These Adhesive Sheets are designed to be used with our Sorbothane mounting feet or sheets. The SB12D sheet, which has two adhesive surfaces, is ideal for semi-permanent applications where the sorbothane surface will not have to be moved often. Our SB12E sheet, which has one adhesive and one felt surface, prevents the sorbothane from marking or marring the table surface that they are placed on.
These sheets are sized to fit directly under our 12" x 12" (305 mm x 305 mm) sorbothane sheets, but can also be cut down to fit under our sorbothane mounting feet.
Sorbothane Isolators