Microscopes have common parts such as a stage, objectives, eyepiece lens, and adjustment knobs. They require powerful light, which can be achieved through lamps or mirrors. The condenser lens and diaphragm help focus and adjust light for sharper images.
The parts of a microscope can vary from microscope to microscope. However, there are some common parts to all microscopes. For starters, microscopes require powerful light, especially those that intensify an image at higher powers. Sometimes microscope lamps are used to achieve the goal of increasing light, and sometimes just using a mirror will solve the problem. If a mirror is part of a microscope, use it to reflect light from an outside source through the bottom of the stage.
The stage is the flat platform that holds the slides in place with the help of stage clips. Sometimes a microscope will have a mechanical stage. If so, the stage will move up and down by turning one knob and move left or right by using a second knob. It is helpful to move the stage until the sample is above the light under the stage. The object that will be inspected under a microscope is called a sample.
There are usually several targets placed on a revolver. The revolver is one of the parts of a microscope that can contain two, three, four or more objectives: just rotate it to increase or decrease the power. Usually the sample is found using the lowest power. So, for example, if a scientist starts by finding the sample at 4X magnification; then, the potency can be increased incrementally to 10X, 40X, or 100X, as needed. Also, the eyepiece lens – the lens through which the scientist looks at the top of the microscope – can have a magnification of 10X; as a result, the specimen can then be viewed at 100X, 400X, or 1000X magnification when the power of the eyepiece lens and objective lens are combined.
Some of the other parts of a microscope include the coarse adjustment knob and the fine adjustment knob. The coarse adjustment knob makes large-scale adjustments to bring the sample into focus. The fine-tuning knob makes tiny adjustments and should be the only knob used when using the higher wattages.
Other parts of a microscope are the condenser lens and the diaphragm or iris. The condenser lens focuses light on a sample. It works best when used at higher powers, such as 400X or higher, and will make the image much sharper. The diaphragm or iris is a rotating platform under the stage. It has different sized holes and lets a varying amount of light pass through the slide – a thicker specimen needs more light than a thinner specimen.
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