Over time the advancements in microscopy have been tremendous. This has lead to the development of different types of microscope, capable of seeing things we didn’t know existed.
The Stereo microscope, also called a dissecting microscope, has two optical paths at slightly different angles allowing the image to be viewed three-dimensionally under the lenses.
Stereo microscopes magnify at low power, typically between 10X and 200X, generally below 100x.
Stereo microscopes allow students to observe plant photosynthesis in action.
The digital microscope, invented in Japan in 1986, uses the power of the computer to view objects not visible to the naked eye.
It connects to a computer monitor via a USB cable, much like connecting a printer or mouse. The computer software allows the monitor to display the magnified specimen. Moving images can be recorded or single images captured in the computer’s memory.
An advantage of digital microscopes is the ability to email images, as well as comfortably watch moving images for long periods.
The Electron Microscope(EM) is a powerful microscope, allowing researchers to view a specimen at nanometer size.
The transmission electron microscope(TEM), the first type of EM, is capable of producing images 1 nanometer in size.
A second type of electron microscope is the scanning electron microscope(SEM)are approximately 10 times less powerful than TEMs, they produce high-resolution, sharp, black and white 3D images.
The TEMs and SEM have practical applications in such fields as biology, chemistry, gemology, metallurgy and industry.
