Online Lab: Microscope Simulator

Zacharias Janssen from Middleberg, Holland, has been credited as the inventor of
the microscope in 1595. Although some believe his father Hans may be the original
inventor of the microscope, Zacharias is recognized for the creation and production
of microscopes. The Dutch families business was eyeglass making, so it is no
surprise that they migrated to microscopy. The original compound microscope was
a single tube with a lens at each end. The first generations of microscopes had a
magnification level between 3x and 9x.
Within sixty-five years, an English man by the
name of Robert Hooke improved the early
A compound microscope. Hooke was a chemist,
physicist, mathematician, and inventor who was
known to have invented the Gregorian
B telescope and much more. Hooke published a
book titled Micrographia in 1665 which was
dedicated completely to microscopic
observations and included detailed depictions
of nonliving materials, plants, and animals with
descriptions. Hooke described cork structure as
Drawings from being “cellulae,” which brought about the
Micrographia contemporary verbiage of “cell” which is now
A. Structure of Cork contributed to elements of tissue. Hooke is also
B. Flea
known for uncovering the responsibility oxygen
plays in the respiratory system.
 Around the same time Hooke was experimenting with
microscopes, a man by the name of Antonie Philips Van
Leeuwenhoek was creating microscopes with one lens
(monocular). He was known for constructing good quality
microscopes for the particular time period (late 1660’s to early
1670’s). After reading Hooke’s Micrographia, Leeuwenhoek went
on to discover, describe, and document observations of bacteria,
spermatozoa, muscle fibers, infusoria, and blood flow in smaller
vessels.
What are the components of a microscope and how
do they work? Picture of Anton van Leeuwenhoek
Arm: The arm is part of a microscope that connects the tube to the base. When one carries it, they
should always hold the arm with one hand and support the base with their other hand.

Base: The base is the bottom part of a microscope.

Body Tube: The pipe that contains mirrors/prisms which is responsible for directing the image to the
ocular lens. It includes the eyepiece one looks into.

Coarse Focus Knob: This is the larger, rough textured focus knob on the side of a microscope. It moves
the objective lenses toward/away from a specimen. During the online simulator program, I used the
coarse focus knob in the lower power (4x) when I was looking through the microscope until the image
appeared.

Condenser Lens: This lens is usually mounted below the stage and serves as the light source focused
onto the specimen. During the online simulator program, the condenser lens helped me view my
specimen through the microscope by illuminating the specimen.

Eyepiece Lens: This is the lens at the top of the microscope which one looks through.
Fine Focus Knob: This is the smaller, rough textured focus knob on the side of a microscope. During the
online simulator program, I used the fine focus knob to improve the clarity of my image when I was
looking through the microscope. Then I used the XY controls to move the area of interest into the center
of the image while looking through the microscope.

Illuminator: The illuminator is a steady light which is mounted under the stage. The most common light
used is Tungsten.

Iris Diaphragm: Under the stage is a rotating diaphragm with different sized holes that change the
intensity of light being projected upward. During the online simulator program, I adjusted the brightness of
my image while looking through the microscope.

Nosepiece: This is the part that holds the objective lenses and can be rotated to change the power.
During the online simulator program, I turned the ocular housing while looking at the microscope.

Objective Lenses: There are usually three or four objective lenses on a microscope (4X, 10X, 40X and
100X powers). A short lens will have a lower power compared to a longer lens. During the online
simulator program, I adjusted the lenses (from 4x) while looking at the microscope by moving the rotating
ocular housing. Once I had the desired objective lens, I looked through the microscope to focus my
specimen.

Ocular Lens: The ocular lens is the eyepiece (lens at top of microscope). Some microscopes are
monocular, meaning they only have one eyepiece. In the online simulator program, our microscope had
two eyepieces. During the online simulator program, I adjusted the ocular lenses while looking through
the microscope to get the two circles of light to merge into one.

Power Switch: Button usually at the base of microscope which turns on the light source.
Stage: The flat platform where you place your slides is known as the stage. Clip(s) help hold a slides in
place. During the online simulator program, I adjusted the slide on the stage while looking at the
microscope until the specimen was over the light. Then I used the coarse focus knob while looking at the
microscope to adjust the stage.

Stage Clips: Stage clips are attached to the stage and help hold the slide in place.

Tube: The tube is what connects the eyepiece/ocular lens to the objective lenses.
 How does a Microscope Work?
A microscope is similar to a refracting telescope, however the specimen is much
closer objective lens. The slide is held in place by the clip(s) attached to the stage of
the microscope. There is a mirror/light at the bottom of the microscope which
illuminates the specimen on the slide. The objective lenses help to magnify images
which appear even larger through the eyepiece lenses.
During the interactive microscope lab project, I took this picture looking
through the ocular lenses of the microscope at 40x of a cheek cell
specimen.
 During the interactive microscope lab project, I took this picture
looking through the ocular lenses of the microscope at 40x of an
onion root tip specimen.
 This picture illustrates a
microscope and its components.

Conclusion
Microscopes have proven to be one of the most prolific and valuable instruments ever
invented. There are several things humans cannot see with the naked eye such as
bacteria, eukaryotes, protists, anthropods, fungi, and much more. Since microbes are
used in foods, sewage treatment, energy, science, and warfare, it is extremely important
to understand their structures and how they operate. This would not be possible without
the advanced technology of microscopes. Microscopy has expanded and transformed
the field of biology which has made some of the impossible challenges and illnesses
facing humanity easily overcome and curable.
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Molecular Expressions. Optical Microscopy Division of the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory. 13
Oct 2004. Accessed 4 Feb 2008.
<http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/optics/timeline/people/janssen.html>.
Southwest Local School District. Microscopes Home Page. Accessed 5Feb 2008.
<http://www.southwestschools.org/jsfaculty/Microscopes/history.html>.
Yes Mag: The Science Magazine for Adventurous Minds. Peter Piper Publishing. Accessed 4 Feb 2008.
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