Wednesday, March 2nd , 2022

University of Burao
Faculty of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences
Department of Crop Production
Chapter 6: Microscope Care and Handling Technique

Lecturer: Jimale Suleiman Said

M.Sc. in Plant Pathology, B.Sc. In Agriculture and
Environmental Science, B.Sc. In Project Management
 Microscopy
 Microscopy: technical field of using microscopes to view objects
and areas of objects that cannot be seen with the naked eye.

 Microscope: a compound word derived from two ancient Greek

terms: “mikros”, meaning small and “skopein”, meaning to see.
 Microscope: an instrument used to see objects that are too
small to be seen by the naked eye.
 Compound Light Microscope: a microscope used for viewing
samples at high magnification (40 - 1000x), which is achieved by
the combined effect of two sets of lenses: the ocular lens (close
to the eye) and the objective lenses (close to the sample).

 Monocular compound microscope: has a single eyepiece

 Binocular compound microscope: has two eyepieces

Compound Microscope
 Structural components of monocular compound microscope
1) Head (body): houses the optical parts in the upper part of the
microscope
2) Arm: connects to the base and supports the microscope head. It
is used to carry the microscope
3) Base: supports the microscope and houses the illuminator
Optical components of monocular compound microscope
1) Ocular lens: the lens at the top that you look through.  They are
usually 10X or 15X power. 
2) Objective lenses/magnifying glasses: the lenses in the objectives
close to the stage
Types of objective lenses
1) High power objective lens: has highest magnification power
2) Medium power objective lens: has medium magnification power
2) Low power objective lens: has low magnification power
 Other Parts of Monocular Compound Microscope
 Observation tube (body tube):  connects the eyepiece to the
objective lenses and maintains proper distance between them
 Revolving nosepiece (turret): holds objective lenses and rotates
them easily to change power
 Stage: the flat platform where you place your slides

 Stage clips:  hold the slides in place

 Rack stop: an adjustment that determines how close the
objective lens can get to the slide
 Iris (diaphragm): controls the amount of light reaching the
specimen.
 Aperture: the hole in the stage through which the base
(transmitted) light reaches the stage
 Condenser: collects and focuses the light from the illuminator on
to the specimen
 Illuminator: light source for a microscope
 Adjustment knobs: move the objective lenses toward or away
from the specimen
Types of adjustment knobs
 Course adjustment knob: focuses image
 Fine adjustment knob: sharpens the image
 Coaxial focus: a focusing system that has both the coarse and
fine focusing knobs mounted on the same axis
 Use of microscope
1) Turn the revolving turret so that the lowest power objective lens
is clicked into position
2) Place the slide on the stage and fasten it with the stage clips.
3) Look at the objective lens and the stage from the side and turn
the focus knob so the stage moves upward. Move it up as far as it
will go without letting the objective touch the coverslip.
4) Look through the eyepiece and move the focus knob until the
image comes into focus.
5) Adjust the condenser and light intensity for the greatest amount
of light.
6) Move the microscope slide around until the sample is in the
center of the field of view.
7) Use the focus knob to place the sample into focus and readjust
the condenser and light intensity for the clearest image with low
power objectives you might need to reduce the light intensity or
shut the condenser
8) When you have a clear image of your sample with the lowest
power objective, you can change to the next objective lenses. You
might need to readjust the sample into focus and/or readjust the
condenser and light intensity. If you cannot focus on your
specimen, repeat steps 3 through 5 with the higher power
objective lens in place. Do not let the objective lens touch the
slide!

9) When finished, lower the stage, click the low power lens into
position and remove the slide.
 Care and Handling of microscope
 Do not touch the glass part of the lenses with your fingers.
 Use only special lens paper and lens cleaner to clean the lenses.
 Always keep your microscope covered in microscope bag when
not in use.
 Look after the bulb
 Store in a clean, dry place

 Keep your User's Manual and wrenches in a safe place

 Perform an annual maintenance check

 Always carry a microscope with both hands. Grasp the arm with
one hand and place the other hand under the base for support.
 Properties of Microscope
 Microscope has dual properties, i.e. magnification and resolution

Magnification
 Magnification: the degree to which the appearance (not the
physical size)of object observed is enlarged.
 It is the ability to make small objects seem larger, such as making
a microscopic organism visible.
 It is measured by multiples, such as 2x, 4x and 10x, indicating
that the object is enlarged to twice as big, four times as big or 10
times as big, respectively.
 The microscope magnifies (enlarges) the image of a specimen
through the bending (refraction) of light rays by curved glass
lenses.
 The light passes through the specimen and enters the objective
lens, refracting the light and begins the magnification process.
 The light then passes through the ocular lens, refracting the light
and completes the magnification process.
 The light finally enters the eye and the magnified image is seen.
 The degree of magnification that can be achieved with a
compound microscope is the product of the individual
magnifying powers of the ocular and objective lenses.

 The total magnifying power of a microscope is calculated by

multiplying the power of the objective by the power of the
ocular.
 Example: the magnifying power obtained with a 100x objective
and a 10x ocular would be 1000x.
 Resolution
  Resolution: the ability to distinguish detail in the object that is
viewed.
  It describes the amount of detail that can be seen in an image.
  Resolution power: the ability of a microscope to distinguish two
close together images as being separate.

  Resolving power of compound light microscope: 200nm

  Resolving power of human eye: 0.1mm