1. Intro
Learn more about microscope
2. Basics
What: Tool for magnifying small objects, visible to the human eye
Type:
- Optical: most common, use visible light and a system of lenses to magnify images. Eyepiece, objective lens, light source. Max 1000x due to wavelength of light, limiting the resolution to about 200 nm
- Stereo: provide 3D view of the specimen. Two eyepieces and lower magnification. For which 3d visualization is beneficial. Not suitable for viewing very small specimen
- Electron: TEM and SEM
- Confocal: use laser light to scan sample sequentially
- Fluorescence: exploit fluorescence and phosphorescence to study properties of organic substances
3. Components
Objective lens: primary lenses, ranging from 4x to 100x
Eyepiece: lens you look through at the top, magnifies the image again, ranging from 10x or 15x
Stage: platform where slides holding specimen are placed
Illuminator: steady, focused light source used to illuminate the specimen
Condenser: located below the stage, focuses the light to control the amount of light
Magnification: Objective lens X eyepiece