Microscopes are scientific instruments that are used to visualise objects that are too small to see with the naked eye
There are two main types of microscope: optical (light) microscopes and electron microscopes
Light Microscopes
- Use lenses to bend light and magnify images by a factor of roughly 100-fold
- Can be used to view living specimens in natural colour
- Chemical dyes and fluorescent labelling may be applied to resolve specific structures
Electron Microscopes
- Use electromagnets to focus electrons resulting in significantly greater magnifications and resolutions
- Can be used to view dead specimens in monochrome (although false colour rendering may be applied)
- Transmission electron microscopes (TEM) pass electrons through specimen to generate a cross-section
- Scanning electron microscopes (SEM) scatter electrons over a surface to differentiate depth and map in 3D
Light versus Electron Microscopes
