BASIC PRINCIPLE

A compound microscope employs two lenses. The objective has a short focal length, in some cases 1 mm or less, and is placed near the specimen or sample to be observed. This produces an image at some distance above the objective, where the light rays come to a focus. The distance (let’s call it s) between the objective and this image is always greater than the focal length of the objective.
The eyepiece has a longer focal length than the objective. It magnifies the real image produced by the objective. In a typical microscope, illumination can be provided by shining a light upward through the sample if the sample is translucent. Some microscopes allow for light to be shone downward on opaque specimens. Figure 1 is a simplified diagram of a compound microscope showing how the light rays are focused and how the specimen can be illuminated.

Laboratory-grade compound microscopes have two or more objectives, which can be selected by rotating a wheel to which each objective is attached. This provides several different levels of magnification for a given eyepiece. In general, as the focal length of the objective becomes shorter, the magnification of the microscope increases. Some compound microscopes can magnify images up to about 2,500 times. A hobby-grade compound microscope can provide decent image quality at magnifications of up to about 1,000 times.

Fig. 1. Illumination and focusing in a compound optical microscope.

مواضيع ذات صلة

Mirror reflections

The sensation of color

Physiochemistry of color vision

The mechanism of color vision

The chromaticity diagram

Measuring the color sensation

Color depends on intensity

Aberration

The ω,k four-vector

Moving sources

Anomalous refraction

The intensity of reflected light