Home

Common Techniques

Classroom Experiments

Virtual Experiments

Tutorials

Games

Glossary

Links

Publishing
Opportunities

About This Site

Contact Us

ZFIN

Cite Us

How to use a Compound Microscope

        A compound microscope has more than one lens and is able to take high resolution images using both bright-field and fluorescent microscopy.  Some microscopes are attached to a digital camera that can capture images and create short movies.  In order to make observations, several steps must first be completed:

1.  Grasp the microscope’s arm with one hand and its base with the other while carrying the microscope.

2.  Place the microscope gently on a table with the arm away from you.    

3.  Turn the coarse adjustment knob to raise the body tube.

4.  Revolve the nosepiece until the low-power objective lens clicks into place.

5.  Open the diaphragm. You should see an even, bright, white circle of light while looking through the eyepiece. 

6.  Place a slide on the stage, centering the specimen over the opening on the stage, and over the light.  Use the stage clips to hold the slide in place.

7.  Looking through the eyepiece, move the coarse adjustment knob slowly until the specimen comes into focus.

8.  Looking through the eyepiece, turn the fine adjustment knob until the specimen comes into better focus.

Adapted from:  http://www.southwestschools.org/jsfaculty/Microscopes/usage.html