Description: A type of microscopy that uses fluorescence to image biological samples
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A valuable research tool, especially in biomedical applications, is the fluorescence microscope. The fluorescence microscope uses a light source to illuminate the sample. This light causes fluorescence within the specimen - ie it absorbs the light and reemits it at a different wavelength (colour). This effect can either occur naturally, or can be enhanced by adding a fluorescent dye to the sample. By collecting this emitted light, fantastic and often beautiful images can be obtained.
This technique is often combined with Confocal Microscopy. In this technique an aperture is placed in the light path of the microscope. This produces a very narrow depth of field enabling high resolution images to be obtained in the x-y plane of the sample. By altering the height of the samples a series of "slices" can be obtained. Subsequent recombination of the slices produces a 3D image.
Helium Neon, Argon Ion, Argon Krypton and Diode Pumped Solid State lasers are used in this field, some examples of which are given below:
