We explain what a microscope is, when and who invented this instrument. The parts that compose it and types of microscope.
What is microscope?
The microscope is an instrument that allows you to observe objects that are too small as to be seen by the human eye. The term microscope It is the conjunction of two concepts, on the one hand “micro” which is equivalent to “little” and “scope” what does it mean “notice”, in short it refers to the small observation, or to a lesser degree.
The microscope is an optical instrument that increases the observation capacity at close-up levels such that up to makes particle analysis possible. The image obtained is really an investigation into the composition of the objects. The study and analysis of small objects is called “microscopy”.
See also: Steps of the Scientific Method
When and who invented the microscope?
This instrument It was invented by Zacharias Janssen in 1590.. The discovery of this instrument was very important, mainly because of its contributions to medical research. In 1665, William Harvey's research on blood circulation appeared, analyzing blood capillaries. In 1667, Marcello Malpighi, an Italian biologist, was the first researcher to study living tissues thanks to observation through a microscope.
The Dutchman Anton van Leeuwenhoek used microscopes to describe for the first time various organisms, protozoa, bacteria, sperm and red blood cells. He can be considered the founder of the science that studies the behavior of bacteria, giving rise to bacteriology. The innovative thing about his technique is that he carried out the studies with his own microscopes, he dedicated much of his time to shaping magnifying glasses, giving the crystals the millimeter thickness he needed.
From then on, technical progress has been made by increasing the level of magnification of microscopes, and this in turn enabling medical science to carry out increasingly exhaustive research about the behavior of microorganisms and the study of cells. The advance thanks to the implementation and development of the microscope was enormous in the 18th century.
Then came the electron microscope, developed in Germany in 1931 by two researchers Max Knoll and Ernst Ruska. This made it possible to achieve a 100,000X magnification, an immense leap for the technique.
Parts of a microscope
The different parts that commonly make up a microscope are:
- Eye lens. It is where the eye of the observer is placed. This lens can magnify the image between 10 to 15 times its size.
- Canon. It is basically an elongated metal tube whose interior is black, it serves as a support for the ocular lens and the objective lenses.
- Objective lenses. It is a group of 2 or 3 lenses located on the revolver.
- Revolver. It is a system that contains objective lenses inside, it may have a rotating system that allows the exchange of these lenses.
- The macrometric screw. It is a knob that, when turned, moves the object being observed closer or further away.
- The micrometric screw. It is what allows the image to be fine-tuned and focused correctly. Making it clearer.
- The platen. It is a clamp platform, it is where the object or preparation that you want to observe is placed.
- The diaphragm. It serves to regulate the amount of light that passes through the object under observation.
- The condenser. It serves to concentrate the light beam on the preparation or object.
- Artificial light source. Directs light towards the stage.
Types of microscopes
There are various types of microscopes that were used throughout history, and there are also currently microscopes designed with a special purpose, some of these are:
- Scanning electron microscope
- Optical microscope
- simple microscope
- Compound microscope
- ultraviolet light microscope
- Fluorescence microscope
- Petrographic microscope
- Microscope in dark field
- Phase contrast microscope
- Polarized light microscope
- Confocal microscope
- Electron microscope
- Transmission electron microscope
- Ion microscope in field
- Scanning probe microscope
- Scanning tunneling microscope
- Atomic force microscope
- Virtual microscope
