How to Use a Microscope

There are several steps that you should take in order to properly set up, and use a microscope. One of the first steps in using a microscope is to decide upon what exactly it is that you would like to do with the microscope. Are you going to be looking for something in particular? If yes, then you will need to know what to do in order to locate that certain something. You should figure out what type of lighting is necessary and also what strength of magnification is going to be required. Once you have figured those things out then it is time to begin with the set up of your workspace and microscope.

Placing the Specimen onto the Stage

Depending upon what type of microscope you are using, and how high the level of quality is, there are different ways of setting up the specimen for viewing. If you are using a higher end type of microscope, then it may be equipped with what is called a mechanical stage. With a mechanical stage you are able to place a slide onto the stage and then without even touching the slide you can finely adjust the position of the object. There are usually knows that you can turn that will accurately position the object underneath of the objective lens. If you are using a lower quality, and more basic microscope, then you will need to manually position the slide underneath of the objective lens by hand.

Lighting

If you are using a microscope that is not self illuminating, then you will need to make sure that you have a light source that has a wide range of contrast. There are going to be different situations that require different levels of lighting. Sometimes you will need high intensity and focused lighting, while other times you will want less intense lighting.

Focus the Objective Lens

You should start with the lowest intensity objective lens, which is the lens with the lowest amount of magnification. Keep intensifying the magnification until the magnification causes the object to appear un-focused. Once this happens you should then go back a single intensity and that should be the best strength to use.

The eyepiece

The next step is to adjust the eyepiece lens so that it properly suits the user. If you are using a single ocular microscope then there is no adjusting to be done. If you are using a binocular microscope then you will need to adjust the distance of separation between the two eyepiece lenses. This is very similar to the adjustment on a pair of zoom binoculars. Some microscopes will even have separate focus adjustments for each eyepiece lens; this is due to the fact that most people have slightly different vision in each eye.

Caring for a Microscope

You should always take good care of a microscope and be sure to properly clean the microscope after each use. Most microscopes will just need to have the lenses cleaned after each use in order to keep the microscope in good working condition.

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