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Related Concept Videos

Imaging Biological Samples with Optical Microscopy01:18

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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Super-resolution Fluorescence Microscopy

Super-resolution fluorescence microscopy (SRFM) provides a better resolution than conventional fluorescence microscopy by reducing the point spread function (PSF). PSF is the light intensity distribution from a point that causes it to appear blurred. Due to PSF, each fluorescing point appears bigger than its actual size, and it is the PSF interference of nearby fluorophores that causes the blurred image. Various approaches to achieving higher resolution through SRFM have recently been developed.
Overview of Microscopy Techniques01:22

Overview of Microscopy Techniques

The early pioneers of microscopy opened a window into the invisible world of microorganisms. In 1830, Joseph Jackson Lister created an essentially modern light microscope. The 20th century saw the development of microscopes that leveraged nonvisible light, such as fluorescence microscopy that uses an ultraviolet light source and electron microscopy that uses short-wavelength electron beams. These advances significantly improved magnification, image resolution, and contrast. By comparison, the...
Confocal Fluorescence Microscopy01:16

Confocal Fluorescence Microscopy

Confocal microscopy is an advanced microscopic technique. The prime advantage of the confocal microscope over other microscopy techniques is its ability to block the out-of-focus light from the illuminated samples using pinholes. It is widely used with fluorescence optics to obtain high-resolution, sharp contrast images. Unlike optical microscopes, confocal microscopes use a focused beam of light laser to scan the entire sample surface at different z-planes. These microscopes are, therefore,...
Overview of Electron Microscopy01:25

Overview of Electron Microscopy

The wavelengths of visible light ultimately limit the maximum theoretical resolution of images created by light microscopes. Most light microscopes can only magnify 1000X, and a few can magnify up to 1500X. Electrons, like electromagnetic radiation, can behave like waves, but with wavelengths of 0.005 nm, they produce significantly greater resolution up to 0.05 nm as compared to 500 nm for visible light. An electron microscope (EM) can create a sharp image that is magnified up to 2,000,000X.
Phase Contrast and Differential Interference Contrast Microscopy01:26

Phase Contrast and Differential Interference Contrast Microscopy

Phase-Contrast Microscopes
In-phase-contrast microscopes, interference between light directly passing through a cell and light refracted by cellular components is used to create high-contrast, high-resolution images without staining. It is the oldest and simplest type of microscope that creates an image by altering the wavelengths of light rays passing through the specimen. Altered wavelength paths are created using an annular stop in the condenser. The annular stop produces a hollow cone of...

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Expansion Microscopy: High-Resolution Fluorescent Imaging with a Conventional Microscope
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High-resolution Observation With a Conventional Optical Microscope Using Ring Illumination.

Toshihiko Ogura1

  • 1National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Health and Medical Research Institute, Central 6, Higashi, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8566, Japan.

Microscopy and Microanalysis : the Official Journal of Microscopy Society of America, Microbeam Analysis Society, Microscopical Society of Canada
|May 13, 2026
PubMed
Summary

Researchers enhanced optical microscope resolution below 200nm using simple ring-shaped light. This cost-effective method improves observation of materials and biological samples without complex equipment.

Keywords:
Lacey micro carbon gridoptical microscopepolystyrene beadsring light sourcespatial resolution

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Area of Science:

  • Optics and Photonics
  • Materials Science
  • Microscopy

Background:

  • Standard optical microscopes have a spatial resolution limit of ~200 nm.
  • Higher resolution typically requires expensive, specialized equipment.
  • Limitations hinder detailed observation in research and industry.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop a cost-effective method for enhancing optical microscope spatial resolution.
  • To enable direct observation of sub-200 nm structures using conventional microscopes.
  • To investigate the efficacy of ring-shaped transmitted light for high-resolution imaging.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized a commercially available, inexpensive ring-shaped light source with a standard optical microscope.
  • Employed ring-shaped transmitted light instead of conventional illumination.
  • Observed 100 nm polystyrene beads and a thin carbon film.

Main Results:

  • Achieved a spatial resolution of approximately 160 nm, surpassing the conventional limit.
  • Demonstrated direct observation of sub-200 nm features.
  • The ring light mechanism is hypothesized to enhance numerical aperture.

Conclusions:

  • Ring-shaped transmitted light offers a simple, affordable way to achieve sub-200 nm resolution with standard optical microscopes.
  • This technique facilitates high-resolution imaging of diverse samples like materials and biological specimens.
  • Expected to find broad applications across scientific and technological fields.