Quantitative particle microscopy in self-metered fluids

We describe a simple device that volumetrically samples poured liquids and draws buoyant  materials into a single field of view for quantitative particle microscopy. Our approach relies on the formation of axisymmetric menisci and computational models of the static fluid developed using surface evolver showed close agreement with experiment. The apparatus was evaluated by counting pollen and demonstrated utility for the field analysis of microparticles.