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Types of Microscopes and Their Uses

This document discusses different types of microscopes used to view cells. It explains that light microscopes typically magnify objects up to 400 times and are used to view living cells, while electron microscopes provide higher resolution but require samples to be viewed under vacuum, preventing the viewing of live cells. The document also describes scanning electron microscopes (SEM) which view the surface of samples and transmission electron microscopes (TEM) which can view internal cell structures by passing electrons through thin slices. Microscopes are important scientific tools used in fields like electronics manufacturing and medical diagnosis.

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4 views2 pages

Types of Microscopes and Their Uses

This document discusses different types of microscopes used to view cells. It explains that light microscopes typically magnify objects up to 400 times and are used to view living cells, while electron microscopes provide higher resolution but require samples to be viewed under vacuum, preventing the viewing of live cells. The document also describes scanning electron microscopes (SEM) which view the surface of samples and transmission electron microscopes (TEM) which can view internal cell structures by passing electrons through thin slices. Microscopes are important scientific tools used in fields like electronics manufacturing and medical diagnosis.

Uploaded by

eignim
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

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Introduction
If you meet some cell biologists and get them talking about what they enjoy most in their work,
you may find it comes down to one thing: secretly, they’re all microscope freaks.
At the end of the day, what they really love is the chance to sit in a small, dark room for hours
on end, communing with their favorite cell type through the lens of a beautiful microscope. One
of my favorite examples of this is the picture below, which shows cells in a very young leaf of
thale cress, a small flowering plant related to mustard.
Microscopes
Magnification is a measure of how much larger a microscope causes an object to appear. For
instance, the light microscopes typically used in high schools and colleges magnify up to about
400 times actual size. So, something that was 1 mm wide in real life would be 400 mm wide in
the microscope image.
The resolution of a microscope or lens is the smallest distance by which two points can be
separated and still be distinguished as separate objects. The smaller this value, the higher the
resolving power of the microscope and the better the clarity and detail of the image.
Most photographs of cells are taken using a microscope, and these pictures can also be called
micrographs.
Light microscopes
A benefit of light microscopy is that it can often be performed on living cells, so it’s possible to
watch cells carrying out their normal behaviors (e.g., migrating or dividing) under the
microscope.
Student lab microscopes tend to be brightfield microscopes, meaning that visible light is passed
through the sample and used to form an image directly, without any modifications.
Electron microscopes
Electrons have much a shorter wavelength than visible light, and this allows electron
microscopes to produce higher-resolution images than standard light microscopes.
One limitation, however, is that electron microscopy samples must be placed under vacuum in
electron microscopy (and typically are prepared via an extensive fixation process). This
means that live cells cannot be imaged.
Images
In the image above, you can compare how Salmonella bacteria look in a light micrograph (left)
versus an image taken with an electron microscope (right). The bacteria show up as tiny purple
dots in the light microscope image, whereas in the electron micrograph, you can clearly see their
shape and surface texture, as well as details of the human cells they’re trying to invade.
Types of electron microscopy
SEM: a beam of electrons moves back and forth across the surface of a cell or tissue, creating a
detailed image of the 3D surface. This type of microscopy was used to take the image of the
Salmonella bacteria shown at right, above.
TEM: in contrast, the sample is cut into extremely thin slices (for instance, using a diamond
cutting edge) before imaging, and the electron beam passes through the slice rather than
skimming over its surface. TEM is often used to obtain detailed images of the internal
structures of cells.
Conclusion
Electron microscopes help create the very tiny electrical circuits found on Silicon microchips.
Scanning microscopes are much more sophisticated, and they have higher magnifications than
light-refracting microscopes.
Microscopes are used to diagnosis the illness in the hospitals and the clinics all over the world.
Microscopes magnify the blood samples, so, the doctors can see the malaria parasites attacking
the red blood cells.

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