Microscopes

• Eyepiece lens


  Where you look through
• Objective lens

  What focuses on the specimen
• stage


  What the slide lays on
• slide


  what the specimen is on
• fine focussing wheel


  How much is focuses on the specimen
• course focussing wheel

  Moves the stage up and down
• mirror/light

  lights up the specimen/reflects light back to the specimen
• Magnification

  Tells us how many times larger an image is seen through a microscope is compared to the real object
• Resolution

  Is the ability to distinguish between 2 or more objects that are close together
• What is the primary function of a light microscope?

  A light microscope passes light through a specimen and creates a magnified image using lenses.
• When was the first light microscope made?

  The first light microscope was made towards the end of the 16th century.
• How does the resolution of the first light microscope compare to the human eye?

  The first light microscope had a resolution better than the human eye.
• What components were used to create the first light microscope?

  The first light microscope was made using two lenses.
• What significant discovery was made possible by light microscopes regarding bacteria?

  Light microscopes allowed bacteria to be seen for the first time.
• What types of cells could be observed using light microscopes?

  Light microscopes allowed us to see plant cells and animal cells as separate objects.
• What limitation did light microscopes have in observing cells?

  We still could not tell lots of sub-cellular structures apart.
• When was the electron microscope first used?

  1933
• How do electron microscopes differ from light microscopes in terms of what is passed through the specimen?

  Electrons are passed through the specimen instead of light
• What is the resolution capability of electron microscopes?

  1 nm
• What is the maximum magnification that electron microscopes can achieve?

  x500,000
• What discoveries were made using electron microscopes?

  The high level of detail of electron microscopes allowed scientists to see sub-cellular structure more clearly.

  They also allowed scientists to study how structures such as mitochondria, chloroplasts and ribosomes function.