Name: Liza Abegail Joy S.

Tabugoc Pharmaceutical Botany Laboratory

LA # 1 Date: August 27, 2021

THE MICROSCOPE

Objectives:
Each student should be able to:
1. Identify the parts of and functions of a microscope.
2. Know the different types of microscopes and its uses.
3. Learn how the microscope is used to view prepared slides.
4. Demonstrate the proper care and handling of the microscope.

Instructions:
1. Search and list down the important parts of a compound microscope and its functions.
Parts of Compound Microscope
 Head/Body - houses the optical parts in the upper part of the microscope
 Base - of the microscope supports the microscope and houses the illuminator
 Arm - connects to the base and supports the microscope head. It is also used to carry
the microscope.
 Eyepiece or Ocular - is what you look through at the top of the microscope.
 Eyepiece Tube - holds the eyepieces in place above the objective lens.
 Objective Lenses - are the primary optical lenses on a microscope.
 Nosepiece - houses the objectives.
 Coarse and Fine Focus knobs - used to focus the microscope.
 Stage - is where the specimen to be viewed is placed.
 Stage Clips - are used when there is no mechanical stage.
 Aperture - is the hole in the stage through which the base (transmitted) light reaches
the stage.
 Illuminator - is the light source for a microscope, typically located in the base of the
microscope.
 Condenser - is used to collect and focus the light from the illuminator on to the
specimen.
 Iris Diaphragm - controls the amount of light reaching the specimen.
 Condenser Focus Knob - moves the condenser up or down to control the lighting
focus on the specimen.
2. Identify the different types of microscopes and its uses.
Types of Microscopes
 Compound Microscope
 used for viewing samples at high magnification (40 - 1000x),
which is achieved by the combined effect of two sets of
lenses: the ocular lens (in the eyepiece) and the objective
lenses (close to the sample).
 Stereo Microscope (also called Dissecting microscope)
- are branched out from other light microscopes for the
application of viewing “3D” objects. These include substantial
specimens, such as insects, feathers, leaves, rocks, sand grains,
gems, coins, and stamps, etc. Functionally, a stereo
microscope is like a powerful magnifying glass.
 Digital Microscope
- an efficient tool to inspect and analyze various objects from
micro-fabricated parts to large electronic devices. Digital
microscopes are used in a wide range of industries, such as
education, research, medicine, forensics, and industrial
manufacturing.
 Inverted Microscope
- has a wide stage that favors it to view specimens in glass
tubes and Petri plates and therefore, it is commonly used to
study live cells, by viewing the cells from the bottom of the
cell culture apparatus. It can also be used to view and study
cells in large amounts of the medium.
 Fluorescent Microscope
- used to image specific features of small specimens such as
microbes. It is also used to visually enhance 3-D features at
small scales.
 Simple Microscope
- one that uses a single lens for magnification, such as a
magnifying glass. It uses a lens to enlarge an object through
angular magnification alone, giving the viewer an erect
enlarged virtual image. It is actually a convex lens of small
focal length, which is used for seeing the magnified images of
small objects.
3. Through a schematic diagram, show the steps/procedure in viewing/examining a slide
preparation.
 4. List the ways to properly care and handle a compound microscope
 Proper Care and Handling of the Microscope
- When finished viewing, lower the stage, click the low power lens into
position and remove the slide.
- Switch off the microscope when not using.
- Avoid touching the glass part of the lenses with your fingers. Use only special
lens paper to clean the lenses.
- Dust is the number one enemy of a microscope so always keep your
microscope covered when not in use. When not in use for extended periods,
replace the microscope in its box.

Questions:
1. Enumerate the parts of a microscope and state the function of each.
Parts of the Microscope
 Eyepiece: The lens the viewer looks through to see the specimen. The eyepiece
usually contains a 10X or 15X power lens.
 Diopter Adjustment: Useful as a means to change focus on one eyepiece so as to
correct for any difference in vision between your two eyes.
 Body tube (Head): The body tube connects the eyepiece to the objective lenses.
 Arm: The arm connects the body tube to the base of the microscope.
 Coarse adjustment: Brings the specimen into general focus.
 Fine adjustment: Fine tunes the focus and increases the detail of the specimen.
 Nosepiece: A rotating turret that houses the objective lenses. The viewer spins
the nosepiece to select different objective lenses.
 Objective lenses: One of the most important parts of a compound microscope,
as they are the lenses closest to the specimen.
 Specimen or slide: The specimen is the object being examined. Most specimens
are mounted on slides, flat rectangles of thin glass.
 Stage: The flat platform where the slide is placed.
 Stage clips: Metal clips that hold the slide in place.
 Stage height adjustment (Stage Control): These knobs move the stage left and
right or up and down.
 Aperture: The hole in the middle of the stage that allows light from the
illuminator to reach the specimen.
 On/off switch: This switch on the base of the microscope turns the illuminator
off and on.
 Illuminator: The light source for a microscope.
 Iris diaphragm: Adjusts the amount of light that reaches the specimen.
  Condenser: Gathers and focuses light from the illuminator onto the specimen
being viewed.
 Base: The base supports the microscope and it’s where illuminator is located.

2. Enumerate good handling practices of the microscope.

 Proper Care and Handling of the Microscope
- Carry it with two hands – 1 beneath the base and one on arm
- Keep it away from the edge
- Avoid tilting it when looking in
- Do not touch the glass surface of the lenses with fingers (transfer of grease,
dirt and perspiration)
- Return objective to low power when finished
- Make sure the cord is secure
- Support the base with one hand
- Lift with the arm of the scope
- Do not swing the microscope

3. What are the different objectives of the microscope and its magnification.
- Essentially, objective lenses can be categorized in to three main categories based on their
magnification power. These include: low magnification objectives (5x and 10x)
intermediate magnification objectives (20x and 50x) and high magnification objectives
(100x).

4. What is meant by magnification?

- Magnification is the ability to make small objects seem larger, such as making a microscopic
organism visible. Magnification refers to an action of magnifying something. Furthermore,
it refers to enlarging the apparent size and not the physical size. This enlargement is
certainly quantifiable. Magnification is measured by multiples, such as 2x, 4x and 10x,
indicating that the object is enlarged to twice as big, four times as big or 10 times as big,
respectively.

5. How do you compute for the total magnification?

- To calculate total magnification, find the magnification of both the eyepiece and the
objective lenses. Once the magnification of each individual lens is known, calculating total
magnification is simple math. Just multiply the magnification of the lenses together and
the result will be the total magnification.

6. At what objective would you place the microscope before keeping it? Why?
- Always place the 4x objective over the stage and be sure the stage is at its lowest position
before putting the microscope away. This is for a reason that leaving the low-power
objective in place makes it more convenient, easier & quicker for the next user of the
microscope to immediately place a specimen-containing slide on the stage and observe it
under the low-power objective, instead of having to swing the nosepiece to bring the low-
power objective into position each time the microscope is removed from storage for first-
use.