What is a microscope? Detailed analysis

The article describes what a microscope is, what it is needed for, what kinds of history there are, and the history of its creation.

Ancient times

In the history of mankind there were always those who were not satisfied with the biblical description of the structure of the world, who wanted to understand the nature of things and their essence. Or who did not deceive the fate of an ordinary peasant or fisherman, like the same Lomonosov.

The most widespread discipline was in the Renaissance, when people began to realize the importance of the importance of exploring the world around them and other things. Especially in this they were helped by various optical devices, telescopes and microscopes. So what is a microscope? Who created it and where is this device used in our time?

Definition

To begin with, we will analyze the official definition. According to him, a microscope is a device for obtaining enlarged images or their structure. It differs from the same telescope in that it is necessary for studying small and near objects, rather than cosmic distances. For certain the name of the author of this invention is not known, but in the history there were references to several people who were the first to use it and designed it. According to them, in 1590 a certain Dutchman named John Lipersgay introduced his invention to the general public. His authorship is also attributed to Zacharias Jansen. And in 1624 all known Galileo Galilei also designed a similar device.

With what a microscope is, figured out, but how did it affect science? Almost the same as his "relative" telescope. Even primitive, but this device allowed to overcome the imperfection of the human eye and look into the microcosm. With the help of it, many discoveries were made in the field of biology, entomology, botany and other sciences.

What is a microscope is now clear, but where else do they apply?

The science

Biology, physics, chemistry - all these areas of science sometimes require a glimpse into the very essence of things that our eye or simple magnifying glass can not consider. It is difficult to imagine modern medicine without these devices: with their help, discoveries are made, types of diseases, infections are detected, and recently one even "photographed" a chain of human DNA.

In physics, everything is somewhat different, especially in those areas that are working on the study of elementary particles and other small objects. There, the laboratory microscope differs somewhat from the usual ones, and conventional optical instruments do not help much, they have long been replaced by electronic and newest probing instruments . The latter allow not only to obtain an impressive increase, but even to register individual atoms and molecules.

This also includes criminalistics, which these devices are needed to determine the evidence, a detailed comparison of fingerprints and other things.

Do not dispense with microscopes and researchers of the ancient world, such as paleontologists and archaeologists. They need them for a detailed study of the remains of plants, the bones of animals with humans and man-made products of past eras. And by the way, a powerful laboratory microscope can be freely purchased for own use. True, not everyone can afford it. Let's take a look at the types of these devices.

Kinds

The first, the main and the oldest is the optical light. Similar instruments are still available in any school in the biology class. It is a set of lenses with adjustable distance and a mirror for highlighting the object. Sometimes it is replaced by an independent light source. The essence of the microscope is to change the wavelength of the visible optical spectrum.

The second one is electronic. It is much more complicated. In simple terms, the wavelength of visible light is 390 to 750 nm. And if the object, for example, is a cell of a virus or other living organism is smaller, then the light will just go around it, it will not be able to be reflected normally. A similar device bypasses such limitations: by a magnetic field it makes waves of light "thinner", because of what you can consider the tiniest objects. It is especially relevant in such a science as biology. A microscope of this kind is much superior to optical light.

And the third is the probing type. In simpler terms, this is a device in which the surface of a particular sample is "probed" by a probe and a three-dimensional or raster image is made on the basis of its movements and oscillations.