Introduction to the Binocular Microscope

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Introduction to the Binocular Microscope

• BIOL 1151

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Topics covered

• Parts of a compound binocular microscope
• How to care for a microscope.
• How to focus a binocular compound microscope.

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Parts of a microscope

• Eyepiece
• Arm
• Nosepiece
• Stage
• Base

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Parts of a microscope Eyepieces
Binocular eyepieces
Telescoping eyepiece
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Parts of a microscope Nosepiece
turret
objectives
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Parts of a microscope Stage elements
Stage clip
Aperture (below)
Stage adjustment knobs
Backwards and forwards
Side to side
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Parts of a microscope Power, light, and focus
Power switch
Power cord
Light adjustment wheel
Substage lamp
Coarse focus
Fine focus
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Care of microscope

• Carrying a microscope one hand grabs the arm and
  the other hand supports the bottom of the base.
• Lens care
• DO NOT TOUCH THE LENS! The oil from your hands
  can etch the glass.
• CLEAN THE LENS WITH LENS PAPER ONLY! Other paper
  has fiber that can scratch the lens.
• Putting away the microscope rotate to the 4X
  objective and roll the nosepiece away from the
  stage so that the space between the stage and
  nosepiece is at a maximum.

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Focusing a microscope

• Rotate the turret so that the 4X objective clicks
  into place.
• Place the slide on the stage. Pull out the slide
  clip, slip the slide in place and gently release
  the slide clip. The slide should be held under
  tension in place.
• Center the specimen over the aperture.
• Using the coarse focus raise the stage until you
  reach a stop.
• Watch from the side to make sure that the
  objective does not smash into the slide!
• Look through the right eyepiece only and lower
  the stage using the coarse focus until the
  specimen is focused. NEVER RAISE THE STAGE TO
  FOCUS!

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Focusing a microscope

• Adjust with the fine focus knob until specimen is
  sharp and clear.
• Now adjust the binocularity by rotating the
  eyepieces so that they match the distance between
  your eyes and you see one circle with both eyes.
• Cover your left eye and bring the specimen in
  focus with the fine focus knob.
• Cover your right eye and adjust the sharpness by
  rotating the telescoping knob on the eyepiece.
• Your specimen should be in focus for your eyes.

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Magnification and resolution

• Magnification is the enlargement of a specimen.
  To determine magnification you take the power of
  the eyepiece X the power of the objective.
• Example A 10X eyepiece and a 4X objective
  magnifies the specimen 40X.
• Resolution is the amount of detail you can see.
  This is limited by the wavelength of light that
  illuminates the specimen.