Getting Started

  1. Before getting your microscope, clear off a space on your lab bench.
  2. Get your assigned microscope and carry it back to your seat with one hand on the arm and the other under the base.
  3. Check to see if the microscope was put away correctly. The shortest lens (4x) should be in position. If it is not, turn it into position (and feel free to curse the previous user).
  4. Check that the condenser lens is all the way up. It is the lens under the stage and is adjusted by a knob on the right beneath the stage.
  5. Obtain a slide of silk fibers from the front desk.
  6. Put the slide on the mechanical stage. It should fit into the L-shaped holder and should be held in place by the curved spring bar. When you move the mechanical stage knobs, the slide should move back and forth and left and right. Move the slide around so that you get a feel for how the mechanical stage works.

Focusing on the Specimen

  1. Plug in the microscope’s power cord and adjust the light to mid-range.
  2. Adjust the eyepieces so that you see a single circle of light. The eyepieces slide apart. Start with them close together and move them apart until the two circles of light fuse into a single circle.
  3. Using the coarse adjustment knob (large knob on arm), raise the stage as far as it will go. The 4x lens is in position, so the slide should not touch the lens.
  4. Using your right eye, look into the right eyepiece. Using the coarse adjustment knob, move the stage away from the lens until the bone section comes into focus. Adjust the focus using the fine adjustment knob.
  5. Center the specimen in the field.
  6. Close your right eye and use your left eye to look into the left eyepiece. Adjust the focus using the ring at the base of the eyepiece, not the coarse adjustment knob. Once you have done this, future focusing is done with the fine adjustment knob.
  7. Locate the iris diaphragm lever and adjust the light so that you can see the specimen clearly.
  8. Move the 10x lens into position and adjust the focus using the fine focus knob. Adjust the iris diaphragm using the iris diaphragm lever.
  9. Center the specimen and then carefully move the 40x lens into position. Repeat the iris diaphragm adjustment.
  10. The 100x lens requires immersion oil and will not be used in this course.

Cleaning Up

  1. Remove the slide and return it to the appropriate slide tray.
  2. Move the mechanical stage arm so that it does not extend beyond the stage.
  3. Turn the 4x lens into position.
  4. Wrap the cord around the base of the microscope.
  5. Carefully return the microscope to the correct position (check the number) in the cabinet.

Note: When you put your microscope back in the cabinet, ask yourself this question: “Does my microscope look like everyone else’s?” If not, you probably didn’t do something right. Usually it’s that you have the mechanical stage arm hanging over the edge of the stage. Always ask if you need help!