Why do we need to study/ understand the functions 5.

Stage Aperture – A central opening of the stage, it

and the parts of the microscope? allows the transmission of light rays from
below.
 Microscope - is a tool in our study with cell and
tissues. 6. Spring Clips/ Stage Clips– Usually two, they hold the
- is a tool viewing in cell and tissues. slide securely in position.

The effective use of a compound microscope is 7. Arm/ Handle–The arm rises from the base and
essential for the study of cells and tissues. supports the rest of the microscope. It serves as a
convenient “handle” when carrying a microscope.
Compound light microscope - is a tool containing two
lenses, which magnify, and a variety of knobs used to 8. Body Tube – This hollow cylinder has an ocular lens
move and focus the specimen. at the upper end and a revolving nosepiece, to which
the objective lenses are attached, at the lower end.
Binocular Compound Microscope - is any optical
microscope with two eyepieces to significantly ease 9. Draw Tube – Situated on top of the body tube, it
viewing and cut down on eye strain. increases magnification.

Monocular Microscopes - are equipped with one 10. Coarse Adjustment Knob – A wheel operating by
eyepiece. rack and pinion gear, the coarse adjustment changes
the elevation of the tube rapidly for preliminary
Why Compound microscope called compound? focusing. The coarse focusing knob has a larger
-The term compound refers to the usage of more than diameter and is used to bring objects into rough focus.
one lens in the microscope.
11. Fine Adjustment Knob– This smaller wheel
Why it called light? moves the tube up and down gradually and
- It is called thus compound light microscope, because it permits accurate and final focusing. The fine
source of illumination is light. focusing knob has a smaller diameter and is
used to bring objects that are in rough focus
PARTS AND MECHANISMS- The parts of a compound into sharp focus.
microscope can be conveniently divided under three
headings. The mechanical parts hold all structures 12. Dust Shield - A circular disc above the revolving
together or control their use while the optical and nose piece, it protects the objectives from dust
illuminating parts regulate the light rays including the particles.
formation of images.
13. Revolving Nose Piece – A rounded structure
Mechanical parts - holding of the structures. carrying three objectives, the lenses may be
Optical parts - regulating the light rays. swung into their respective positions. The
Illuminating parts - formation of images. nosepiece may be rotated to move an
objective into viewing position.
I. MECHANICAL PARTS
1. Base – It supports the whole microscope. 14. Mechanical Stage. The mechanical stage is the
The base is the bottom portion of the microscope. It device on the stage surface that holds the slide
contains the lamp and the on/off switch. Ideally, the and enables precise movement of the slide. It is
lamp should have a voltage control to vary the operated by the mechanical stage control knobs.
intensity of light. The lowest possible voltage that
provides a good image should be used to extend the II. OPTICAL PARTS
life of the lamp. 1. Ocular (Eye piece) – This cylindrical structure is
- It is also called portion base. inserted into the upper end of the draw tube.

2. Pillar – This portion extends upwards from the 2. Objectives – Cylindrical tubes attached to the
base supporting all other parts. revolving nose piece for the initial
magnification of the image, they are
3. Inclination Hinge or Joint – The inclination adjusted to be parfocal, that is, when any
joint allows tilting of the microscope at any objective is swung into its position, it is so
desired angle, often as a matter of comfort. nearly focused as to require only the
- It is also called Inclination Screw. use of the fine adjustment.

4. Stage –The stage is the platform on which a A. Low Power Objective (LPO, 10:1) – The LPO
microscope slide is placed for viewing. It views the specimen in a larger field. The
contains the specimens to be examined. shortest objective is the low power objective, and it has
a magnification of 10X.
B. High Power Objective (HPO, 45:1) – A greater A microscope is focused by changing the distance between the object
on the microscope and the objective lens. This change is
magnification is obtained with this objective
accomplished by using the coarse and fine focusing knobs. The
where detailed structures may be observed. The focusing knobs raise and lower either the stage or the body tube
intermediate length objective is the high-dry depending on the type of microscope. Both types of focusing
objective, with a magnification of 45X. procedures are described below. Determine which method is to be
used for your microscope.

C. Oil Immersion Objective (OIO, 100:1) – Greater As a general rule, you should always start focusing with the low
magnification than the HPO is further obtained by using power (10X) objective. The coarse focusing knob is used only with the
this objective. A drop of oil is placed on the slide for low power objective. With the high-power and oil immersion
objectives use only the fine focusing knob.
better refraction. The longest objective is the oil
immersion objective, which has a magnification of Switching Objectives
100X. The magnifications of the oil immersion and high-
dry objectives may vary slightly in different models of Modern microscope are usually parcentric and parfocal. This means
that when an object is centered in the field and in sharp focus with
microscopes.
one objective, it will be centered and in focus when another objective
is rotated into the viewing position. However, it may be necessary to
III. ILLUMINATING PARTS make slight adjustments to re-center the object with the mechanical
1. Mirror – This is located below the stage to reflect stage or bring it into sharper focus with the fine focusing knob.
light rays through the object. One side of the mirror is
Start your observations with the low power objective, even though
plane while the other is concave. The former is used you may want to observe the object with the high-power or oil
with natural light while the latter is employed when immersion objectives. Once the object is center and in focus with the
artificial light is available. The mirror is supported by a low power objective, it is easy to switch to the high-power objective
simply by rotating the nosepiece. Note that the working distance, the
mirror arm swinging like a pendulum and having at its
distance between the objective and the slide, decreases as the power
end a mirror fork rotating vertically. This facilitates of the objective increases.
movement in any desired position or angle.
The amount of light entering the objective decreases as the power of
the objective increases. Thus, you will need to increase the voltage or
Plane mirror- used natural light
open the diaphragm a bit to provide a light intensity that yields the
Concave mirror- used artificial light sharpest image with the high-dry objective.

2. Substage – Consisting of two parts, it is used The easiest and safest way to bring the oil immersion objective into
position is to progress from low power to high-dry to oil immersion.
primarily for focusing light rays upon the However, you may switch directly from the low power objective to
specimen. the oil immersion objective. Before rotating the oil immersion
objective into the viewing position, place a drop of immersion oil on
A. Condenser – A combination of lenses beneath the the slide. Also, open the diaphragm to its maximum aperture to
increase the amount of light. A slight adjustment of the fine focusing
stage, the condenser makes it possible for a maximum knob is all that will be required to bring the object into focus.
amount of light to be directed on the object. It
concentrates the light on the microscope slide. Lens Care
Develop the habit of cleaning the lenses with lens paper before using
the microscope. Use only lens paper for cleaning the lenses. If liquid
B. Iris diaphragm – This is made up of a number of thin gets on the objectives or stage of the microscope, wipe it off
pieces of metal operated by a lever for regulating the immediately with lens paper. If simply wiping the lenses with lens
amount of light necessary to obtain a clear view of paper doesn’t get them clean, it may be necessary to clean them with
the specimen. It regulates the amount of light reaches lens paper moistened with green soap or xylene. Use such a
procedure only as directed by your instructor. Never try to
the slide. disassemble any part of the microscope.

Magnification The best way to determine if the ocular is clean is to rotate it

between your thumb and forefinger while looking through the
The microscope lens system magnifies specimen so that very small microscope. A rotating pattern is evidence of a dirty lens. If cleaning
structures can be distinguished. The total magnification is determined the top lens fails to remove the debris, inform your instructor. If the
by the power of the ocular and objective being used. It is calculated ocular is removed to clean the lower lens, it is imperative that a piece
by multiplying the power of the ocular by the power of the objective. of lens paper be placed over the open end of the body tube.
For example, a 10x ocular and a 45x objective yield a total
magnification of 450x. An image that appears cloudy or blurred indicates a dirty objective. If
cleaning with lens paper moistened with water fails to clear the
Resolution image, consult your instructor about cleaning the lens with xylene.
Routinely wipe off the upper surface of the condenser lens with lens
Magnification without resolution is of little value. Resolution is the paper to remove any accumulated dust.
ability to distinguish tiny adjacent objects as two distinct objects.
Resolving power is a function of the wavelength of light and the
design of the microscope lenses. The shortest wavelengths (blue) of
visible light provide maximum resolution. This is why microscope
have a blue light filter over the lamp.

Use of the oil immersion objective is required for maximum

resolution, and on the best light microscopes it will enable the
distinction of microscope objects that are 0.2.µm apart. If they are
closer together, they will be seen as one object because of a fusion of
the images.

Focusing