Focus specimens

using the
compound
microscope

PREPARED BY: TYPE YOUR NAME HERE

LEARNING
COMPETENCY

Focus specimens using the

compound microscope
 Why do we use microscopes?

To see things that are too small to see with

our eyes or even with a hand lens
 Microscopes enabled scientists to
understand that cells are self contained
units
 They were able to identify bacteria and
other disease causing organisms
 Slides
 To look at something under a
microscope it needs to be very
thin
 This is because light needs to pass
through
 the specimen
The specimen is first placed on a
glass slide - which is obviously see-
through
 The specimen is covered in a cover
slip - this is a really thin piece of
glass
 We will make our own slides soon
 you can also buy permanent slides
This is a permanent slide of a plant
stem

Note the
individual cells
It is being looked
at under a fairly
low power - a
higher power
would show
fewer cells but in
greater detail
 This is a temporary slide of a drop of
pond water

There are lots

of living
organisms we
can only see
under a
microscope
 What a Microscope looks like

This is the
diagram in
your notes.
Highlight the
important
labels and note
the functions
of each part as
you go through
them
 Stage: the slide
goes onto the stage
and is held in place
with clips.
Don’t clip a slide in
place until you have
found an area to
look at
 All microscopes
need a source of
light.
Some have a bulb
but the ones you
will use have a
mirror.
You need to reflect
light from a bulb or
a window so it goes
up through the
specimen on the
stage
 There are two
lenses that
will refract The eye piece
light to make magnifies by
the image x10
much larger This is what
you look
that the through
actual
specimen
They magnify
the image
 The objective lenses are
attached to a rotating disc so
they can be changed

Always start with the lowest

power-which is the shortest.
This usually magnifies x10
So with the eyepiece that is:
x(10x10) or x100

Once you have focused using

the low power move the
higher power into place- this is
the longer objective lens
 We focus on the
specimen using the
focusing knob

Most microscopes have

two focusing knobs:
The big one is the course
focus knob that you use
to focus on low power

The small one is the fine

focus knob, used only
with the higher power
objective lens
 Take a look at this
picture that shows
how light is refracted.
You will see when you
use a microscope that
the image is upside
down and back to
front:
when you move the
slide up the image will
move down - you will
get used to it!
Test yourself
 Read through the notes on how to
use a microscope
Be aware of the parts of the
microscope being referred to
 Making a slide
 In the next lesson we will make slides and
look at them

 To see cells clearly we stain them with

chemicals

 So there are a few steps that you should

be familiar with before you try it yourself.
 Looking at an Onion Epidermal Cells

The trick here is to peal off a small piece of

epidermis - your teacher will show you how
to do this in the lesson
 The epidermis is placed carefully on a slide.
Be careful not to fold it
 We then place a drop of water on top to
stop the cells drying out
 Now we need a cover slip - the trick here
is to lower the cover slip so there are no air
bubbles

 Blotting paper removes excess water

 Staining by Irrigation
 You will stain your onion
epidermis with Iodine
solution
 This is done by placing a
drop of iodine solution next
to the cover slip
 and drawing it through with
blotting paper:
 Looking at Cheek cells
Scrape the inside of your cheek
very gently with the back of your
thumb nail
Now rub that onto a slide
Cover in a drop of water then
place a cover slip on top without
making any air bubbles!
 Cheek cells are stained by irrigating with
Methylene Blue

 Don’t get this on

your skin!

 Cheek cells are about 12m in diameter

 That is about 0.012mm
 They will have to be magnified to see
them