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Imaging Biological Samples with Optical Microscopy

Imaging Biological Samples with Optical Microscopy

Optical microscopy uses optic principles to provide detailed images of samples. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek designed the first compound optical microscope in the 17th century to visualize blood cells, bacteria, and yeast cells. In 1830, Joseph Jackson Lister created an essentially modern light microscope. The 20th century saw the development of microscopes with enhanced magnification and resolution.
In optical microscopy, the specimen to be viewed is placed on a glass slide and clipped on the stage...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 13, 2026

High-resolution Fiber-optic Microendoscopy for in situ Cellular Imaging

High-resolution Fiber-optic Microendoscopy for in situ Cellular Imaging

Published on: January 11, 2011

Miniature 3D-printed rod-like refractive objective for endoscopic applications.

Kevin Beckford¹, Yicheng Ma², Jinyun Liu²

¹Rice University, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Houston, Texas, United States.

Journal of Biomedical Optics

|March 12, 2026

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

This study introduces a 3D-printed refractive rod objective for endoscopy, offering a wide field of view (FOV) and high resolution. The novel lens design surpasses commercial gradient index (GRIN) lenses in FOV, enabling advanced fluorescence imaging.

Keywords:

additive manufacturing fluorescence endoscopy miniature endoscopic objectives two-photon polymerization

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Video-rate Scanning Confocal Microscopy and Microendoscopy

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Published on: October 20, 2011

Area of Science:

Optical engineering
Additive manufacturing
Biomedical imaging

Background:

Gradient index (GRIN) lenses are compact but have limited fields of view (FOV).
Endoscopic imaging requires miniaturized optics with wide FOV and high resolution.

Purpose of the Study:

To design, fabricate, and validate a 3D-printed refractive rod objective for fluorescence imaging.
To compare its performance against a commercial GRIN lens.

Main Methods:

A 1x magnification refractive rod objective was designed using Zemax OpticStudio and fabricated via two-photon polymerization.
Three photopolymer resins were evaluated for autofluorescence.
Resolution was assessed using a USAF resolution target.

Main Results:

The 3D-printed objective achieved diffraction-limited resolution (4.38 μm).
It demonstrated a significantly larger FOV (498 μm) compared to a commercial GRIN lens (188 μm).
IP-Visio resin showed the lowest autofluorescence, enabling successful imaging of mouse colon tissue.

Conclusions:

The 3D-printed refractive rod objective combines GRIN lens compactness with multi-element lens aberration correction.
This technology enables uniform resolution over a large FOV and allows for tailored material selection for fluorescence imaging.
Future work includes integration with fiber bundles and improved designs for long-term stability.