Microscope Basics

Antoni van Leeuwenhoek

First to experiment with microbes, originally referred to as animalcules.

Robert Hooke

Coined the term cell for describing biological organisms.

Ocular lens (Eyepiece)

Lens through which the viewer looks to see the magnified image.

Body Tube

Connects the eyepiece to the objective lenses.

Nosepiece

Holds the objective lenses and can be rotated to switch between them.

Arm

Supports the body tube and connects it to the base.

Objectives

Lenses of varying magnification used to view the specimen.

Stage

Platform where the slide is placed for viewing.

Coarse Adjustment

Used to make large adjustments to the focus of the microscope.

Diaphragm

Controls the amount of light reaching the specimen.

Fine Adjustment

Used for making small adjustments to the focus.

Light

Illuminates the specimen for better visibility.

Base

Supports the entire microscope and houses the light source.

Power of magnification

Calculated by multiplying the power of the ocular lens by the power of the objective.

Low power objective

Magnification of 40x (4x ocular lens and 10x objective).

Mid power objective

Magnification of 100x (10x ocular lens and 10x objective).

High power objective

Magnification of 400x (40x ocular lens and 10x objective).