_Heine_secrets2a.

rtf 10 Oct 2018

Secrets of the Leitz Heine Condenser
Developed in the early 1950’s the Heine Condenser remains a unique and versatile adjunct to the modern
transmitted light microscope. Recent investigations and experimentation have shed new light on this
vintage device and revealed not only some of the deeper secrets of its workings but also additional ways
in which it may be usefully employed, even with some of the latest microscopes.

Not manufactured since the late 1970’s, there were two basic forms of the Heine: (1) #63, having a
39mm O.D. flange for older “sleeve mount” Leitz scopes, and (2) #64, having an flat, ob round upper
flange for later (ca. 1970’s) “fork mount” Leitz scopes. There is also an “unofficial” third form, which
was user-made by removing the mounting flange from the #64 version, primarily to facilitate the
condenser’s use on non-Leitz scopes. These “#64-mod” Heines may be found either with or without the
circular retaining collar for the mounting flange remaining in place.

Most of the Heine condensers available today are of the #64 type. It has been estimated that more than
30,000 Heine condensers were manufactured over the twenty-plus years of its official life – so the Heine
is far from being truly “rare.” (There was also, very briefly, a “color” version produced, but only a few
hundred or so of those were ever made, so that type actually is quite rare!)

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Many microscope users consider the Leitz ‘Heine’ Condenser as a universal solution to their general
illumination needs, supporting Darkfield, Phase Contrast and Brightfield modes, all in one compact
package!

However, while much of what is claimed for its capabilities is basically due the design of the device
itself and is not without a few limitations. The following sections examine the different operating modes
of the Heine condenser, discuss its design and features, reveal some of its limitations, and explore ways
in which this device may be best applied to modern microscopes and modern uses.

Leitz Heine Design and Inner Workings

The basic intent of the Heine condenser's design was to provide a thin, adjustable, hollow cone of light
which would enable multi-mode illumination (i.e.: Darkfield, Phase Contrast, Brightfield, etc.) for use in
microscopy.

The basic design of the Heine closely resembles that of a classic reflecting-type Darkfield condenser, but
with two additions, (1) a lower “Collector lens" and, (2) an optional “Oil Top” which can significantly
increase the NA of the light cone produced.

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There is also a “Control Knob” which allows the user to easily adjust the NA of the illumination to best
suit the objective in use and select the desired mode of illumination. This control functions by raising or
lowering the internal optics (within the central tube of the condenser), leaving the positions of both the
Collector Lens and the Oil Top (if present) unchanged. This allows user-adjustment of the angle of the
illumination cone exiting the condenser.

This arrangement results in three distinct optical configurations which determine its inherent operating
capabilities and the range of Objectives which can be supported properly. These Modes may be defined
as: Basic Dry (no Top), Complete Dry, and Complete Oil (both with the optional Oil Top fitted).

In the Basic Dry configuration the Condenser is operated with the top open – the optional Oil Top is not
fitted and the Control Knob allows adjustment of the Illumination over a range of about NA 0.2 to 0.7,
or so. Also, the illuminated Field will be about 5mm in diameter at (low-NA settings). These conditions
allow the Condenser to support Objectives from as low as 4x to as high as 40x, or more (NA 0.70 max).

The next step up in capability is the Complete Dry configuration, where the optional Oil Top is fitted,
but it only used “dry” (without immersion). Note however, that the Objective used may be either of the
dry or immersion type, as dictated by its design. In this case, the NA of the Illuminating cone can be as
high as 1.00, allowing use with objectives of up to NA 0.85. However, the Field of Illumination is still
large enough to support objectives with a magnification as low as 10x!

For ultimate capability, the Condenser is used Complete Oil, with the Oil Top in place and immersed.
The Top should be very close to the underside of the specimen slide and the immersion fluid should
form a continuous layer between the Top and the slide and be free of any bubbles. In this configuration
the Illumination can be as high as NA1.40, allowing use with objectives as high as NA 1.15 the
maximum designed for use with the Heine. With careful setup useful results may be had with some
objectives of even higher NA, especially types fitted with an internal “iris”.

Each of these configurations is available in all Operating Modes, although not all possible combinations
of Configuration and Mode are equally useful – the optimum choice typically depends on the object to
be examined, the objective(s) to be used and the results desired (i.e.: external shape or internal details).

The three basic Optical Configurations for the Heine are summarized in the following table.

Heine Optical Configurations – Summary

Configuration Optics Illumination

Basic Dry No Oil Top NA= 0.2 to 0.7+
Complete, Dry Oil Top – no oil NA= 0.5 to 1.00
Complete, Oil Oil Top – with oil NA= 0.5 to 1.40

The following sections discuss the different Illumination Modes available with the Heine condenser and
show how these are typically affected by the choice of Configuration. . .

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 Heine Illumination Modes

Illumination Mode Control

With the Heine condenser selection and adjustment of the Illumination Mode is made via the Control
Knob, located on the side of the condenser (see illustration, page 2). This control functions by raising or
lowering the reflecting optical element within the main tube of the Heine, which increases or decreases
the angles of the illuminating cone exiting the condenser. (It is also possible to reduce this cone even
further by lowering the entire condenser body, but this is only practical when in the Basic Dry
configuration.)

The exact adjustment necessary will depend upon both the Configuration of the condenser, the
Illumination Mode chosen and the Objective in use. Note that, in most cases (especially with Phase
Contrast) precise centering of the Heine illumination with the Objective may also be necessary.

Darkfield mode

To better understand the use (and limitations) of the Heine condenser, we may begin with its use the
Darkfield mode and consider how the characteristics and capabilities of the condenser change with the
Optical Configuration chosen. This mode supports the widest possible range of objectives, and it is
also the easiest to understand.

In the Darkfield mode the condenser is adjusted so that the illumination from the condenser does not
actually enter the objective. Instead the final image is formed by light which has interacted with the
structure of the object being examined, either by reflection, refraction or other means, or some
combination of these. Thus, there is no “background” illumination and the object appears brightly lit
against an otherwise dark field. Darkfield mode offers very high contrast capability, to the extent that
even objects quite far out-of-focus can still be easily detected in the visual field!

For Darkfield mode to function properly, the lowest NA of the Illumination must be greater than the
NA of the Objective. Also, the specimen of interest should lie at or very near the focus of the Condenser
and the illuminated field formed by the Condenser should be larger than the Objective’s Field-of-View.
(These points will be discussed in greater detail in a later section.)

The table below summarizes the performance characteristics of the Heine when used for Darkfield in
each of its three Optical Configurations:

Heine Condenser Configurations — Darkfield Mode

Configuration Optics Illumination Objectives

Basic Dry No Oil Top NA= 0.2 to 0.7+ 4x to 40x-63x

Complete, Dry Oil Top (dry) NA= 0.5 to 1.00 10x to 63x (dry/Oil)

Complete, Oil Oil Top (Oil) NA= 0.5 to 1.40 10x to 100x (dry/Oil)

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Phase Contrast mode

Not to complicate things further, it needs to be pointed out that there are actually two primary variations
of Phase Contrast – the common, or “Zernike” system and the vintage Leitz “Heine” system. Naturally,
and as one might readily suspect, the Leitz Heine Condenser was designed for the Leitz Heine system!

The main differences between these two methods lies in the geometry of the phase rings within the
objectives. For the more common (Zernike) type, the phase ring diameter is roughly 40-60% of the
objective NA, whereas with Heine objectives, the diameter is typically 75-90% of the NA. Heine phase
rings also tend to be much thinner that Zernike-type rings, which is why the Heine condenser was
designed to produce such a “thin cone” of illumination.

The implications of these differences are that (a) the Heine condenser can support a broad range of
phase objectives, while (b) Zernike-type (fixed ring) condensers will usually support only a very limited
range of phase objectives, and often only a very select group from the condenser’s maker. Note here that
Leitz also made a conventional Zernike-type phase contrast system (“Phaco”).

Also, and in general, for proper imaging, it is necessary for the focus of the light cone from the phase
condenser to lie close to the axial position of the phase ring in the matching objective. Failure to achieve
this typically leads to a degraded image – i.e..: uneven background intensity, image “halo” artifacts, etc.

Now, given all this you might suspect that the Heine condenser would be most problematic when used
with high-NA Zernike phase objectives, but this is not the case. Instead, the real limitations lie when the
Heine is used with low-NA (low-power) phase objectives. This is because there is, by design, a minimum
size for the NA of the illuminating cone from the Heine, and this is greater than the NA’s of most phase
rings in Zernike-type low-power objectives. Typically, the Heine condenser simply cannot properly
“match” the phase rings in most objectives <16x, unless they have an unusually large diameter.

Fortunately, given the flexibility of the Heine itself, this is not normally a significant issue. The solution,
when faced with a low-power objective for which a proper phase image cannot be had is simply to shift
to another contrast mode (e.g.: Darkfield) for which such problems do not occur!

The table below lists the Heine-compatibility range for some common Zernike-type phase systems:
(Types listed below are 160 or 170mm tube length and 45mm parfocal distance types.)

Heine Condenser Compatibilities — Phase Contrast objectives

Leitz Phaco Phaco-2 thru -4, and, typ. 20x - 100x

‘Phaco’ 16x or higher. typ. 16x - 100x

Nikon CF Ph2 thru Ph4 typ. 20x thru 100x

Olympus LB (BH2) 20x thru 100x typ. 20x thru 100x

Zeiss Standard Ph2 and Ph3 typ. 16x - 100x

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‘Brightfield’ modes

Perhaps surprisingly, while the Heine Condenser has many valuable features, the ability to support true
Brightfield illumination in not one of them!

This is because the Heine was designed to provide only a “hollow cone” of illumination, whereas
Brightfield actually requires a “solid cone” of illumination. This difference becomes apparent when
viewing the Objective Rear Aperture – a Brightfield condenser produces a solid circle of light while the
Heine condenser produces only a thin “ring” of light. (The Rear Aperture view is essentially an axial
view of the illuminating cone, so what is being seen is a “cross-section” of the illuminating light cone!)

Thus, as a consequence of its design, the Heine is limited to providing what is commonly termed,
“COL” (“Circular Oblique Lighting”) ,or pPC (“pseudo-Phase Contrast”) illumination, both discussed
in greater detail below. (Note that both these modes differ from true Phase Contrast – discussed next).

This situation makes the Heine often a less-than-ideal choice for viewing extended structures (e.g.:
sections) and/or well-stained preparations. However, it remains very useful for unstained or weakly-
stained/faded slides, where the production of optical artifacts is less likely.

The table below summarizes the three Brightfield configurations and their performance characteristics:

Heine Condenser Configurations — ‘Brightfield’ Modes

Basic Dry No Oil Top NA= 0.2 to 0.7+ 4x to 100x (dry/oil) *

Complete, Dry Oil Top (dry) NA= 0.5 to 1.30 10x to 100x (dry/oil) *

Complete, Oil Oil Top (Oil) NA= 0.5 to 1.40 10x to 100x (dry/oil) *

* As a rough guide, for COL the illumination cone is set to between 50% and 80% of the Objective NA,
while for pPC it is typically set closer to 90-95% of the Objective NA. (Beyond about 95%, the
illumination begins a transition into Darkfield mode.)