Microbiology and Parasitology Lab
A standard microscope has three, four, or five objective
Parts of a Compound Microscope
the purpose of a microscope is to magnify a small
object or to magnify the fine details of a larger object in
order to examine minute specimens that cannot be
seen by the naked eye.
Eyepiece(Ocular Lens): The lens the viewer looks
through to see the specimen. The eyepiece usually
contains a 10X or 15X power lens.
Diopter Adjustment: Useful as a means to change focus
on one eyepiece so as to correct for any difference in
vision between your two eyes.
Body tube (Head): The body tube connects the
eyepiece to the objective lenses.
Arm: The arm connects the body tube to the base of
the microscope.
Coarse adjustment: Brings the specimen into general
focus.
Fine adjustment: Fine tunes the focus and increases the
detail of the specimen.
Nosepiece: A rotating turret that houses the objective
lenses. The viewer spins the nosepiece to select
different objective lenses.
Objective lenses: One of the most important parts of a
compound microscope, as they are the lenses closest to
the specimen.
lenses that range in power from 4X to 100X. When
focusing the microscope, be careful that the objective
lens doesn’t touch the slide, as it could break the slide
and destroy the specimen.
In general, objective lenses are responsible for:
 Primary image formation
 Determine the quality of the image produced
 The total magnification
 The overall resolution
Scanning Objective (4X): This shortest objective is
useful for getting an overview of the slide (especially
handy with some of the slides that contain whole
organs like a section of the spinal cord, lung, digestive
tract, ovary, etc.).
Low Power Objective (10X): This next shortest
objective is probably the most useful lens for viewing
slides. Low power objectives cover a wide field of view
and they are useful for examining large specimens or
surveying many smaller specimens. This objective is
useful for aligning the microscope.
Almost any feature you need to observe in this course
can be located with the 100X total magnification this
objective provides. As an added benefit, the low
power objective is always safe to use as it cannot be
lowered to the point of contacting and thus possible
breaking a slide. This is also true of the scanning
objective mentioned above.
High Power Objective (40x): This objective (sometimes
called the "high-dry" objective) is useful for observing
fine detail such as the striations in skeletal muscle, the
arrangement of Haversian systems in compact bone,
types of nerve cells in the retina, etc. it is ideal for
observing very fine detail, such as nerve cells in the
retina or the striations in skeletal muscle.
Oil Immersion Objective (100X): This longest objective
is used for observing the detail of individual cells such
as white blood cells, the cells involved in
spermatogenesis, etc. The lens must be used with a
specially formulated oil that creates a bridge between
the tip of the objective and the cover slip. Since the
refractive indices of air and this lens are different, the
lens will not work without this special oil!
Microbiology and Parasitology Lab

Specimen or slide: The specimen is the object being The then magnified image continues up through the
examined. Most specimens are mounted on slides, flat body tube of the microscope to the eyepiece, which
rectangles of thin glass. further magnifies the image the viewer then sees.

The specimen is placed on the glass and a cover slip is

placed over the specimen. This allows the slide to be
Reference:
easily inserted or removed from the microscope.
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microscope. It also allows the specimen to be labeled,
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transported, and stored without damage.
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Stage: The flat platform where the slide is placed.

Stage clips: Metal clips that hold the slide in place.

Stage height adjustment (Stage Control): These knobs

move the stage left and right or up and down.

Aperture: The hole in the middle of the stage that

allows light from the illuminator to reach the specimen.

On/off switch: This switch on the base of the

microscope turns the illuminator off and on.

Illumination: The light source for a microscope. Older

microscopes used mirrors to reflect light from an
external source up through the bottom of the stage;
however, most microscopes now use a low-voltage
bulb.

Iris diaphragm: Adjusts the amount of light that

reaches the specimen. It is located above the
condenser and below the stage.

Condenser: is used to collect and focus the light from

the illuminator on to the specimen. Gathers and
focuses light from the illuminator onto the specimen
being viewed.

Base: The base supports the microscope and it’s where

illuminator is located.

Rack stop is a small screw that does not allow the stage
to move too close to the objective lenses, and keeps
the microscope slide at a safe distance from the
objectives

How Does a Microscope Work?

All of the parts of a microscope work together - The
light from the illuminator passes through the aperture,
through the slide, and through the objective lens,
where the image of the specimen is magnified.