Microscopy is divided into three different branches, namely, electron, scanning probe and optical microscopy.

1. Electron microscopy – In this kind of microscopy, the resolution of 0.2 micrometers is the acceptable resolution of the wavelength of the light. With the use of electron microscopes, for you to achieve higher resolution, electron beam with a small wavelength should be used.
2. Scanning probe – this branch of microscopy that scans the sample using a physical probe to form images of different surfaces. The picture of an exterior is achieved by perfunctorily moving the probe in a raster can of the sample. It should be line by line and the interaction that would be seen in the surface of the probe should be recorded as a function of the position. Microscopes that are used in this branch can picture many interactions at the same time.
3. Optical microscopy – also known as light microscopy. This branch of microscopy involves the fleeting of noticeable light transmitted from the focus with the use of one lens. The image taken can be seen unswervingly by the naked eye. But there are limitations in optical microscopy:

- This technique can only be effectively seen with dark or bright refracting objects.
- The limit resolution of diffraction is just about 0.2 micrometer.
- When the light is not within the focal plane, the lucidity of the image will be reduced.

ADVANTAGES IN THE ADVANCEMENT OF MICROSCOPY

You will notice that microscopy nowadays is getting more flexible because of the digital technology. When you will take any images or pictures using digital gadgets, you will get a lot of benefits:

1. You can store and manage without difficulty digital images.
2. Digital images are so portable and you can easily bring them anywhere and them even files in a snap anywhere in the world.
3. You don’t need to deal with storage boxes, dusts, etc. anymore because you can just store those images on your gadgets.
4. You can also amuse yourself with digital images using different software programs.
5. You can easily find your digital images for future use.

DISCOVERIES IN THE ADVANCEMENT OF MICROSCOPY

Have you ever noticed new discoveries or inventions in microscopy? We already have advance technology nowadays that let us bring our gadget anywhere we want.

1. DG-1 – It is a digital video microscope that allows you to store up to 48 photos on a 4-MB plate. It has a 12-inch LCD screen. The resolution of the photo taken by DG-1 is 640×480 pixels. The video images are not in real time because it uses 1/4 inch VGA or Video Graphics Array. It is portable and it can directly be inserted in a laptop computer. It has a rechargeable lithium battery that will last up to 1.5 hours. However, the digital video microscope has 30X lenses with magnifications of 50X, 100X and even 500X. You don’t need an external light because the video microscope has built-in illumination. This is good for textile, paper sample, fingerprint and skin analyses. It also includes and adaptor called C mount that will let you use it as stereo microscope.
2. Plug-and-play USB microscope – Plug-and-play USB microscope and DG-1 both have the same lenses. But unlike DG-1, this kind of microscope has its own LCD that directly connects to different computers like iMac, iBook, PowerBook and G4. It has the same resolution as DG-1 with a frame speed of 12.5 frames/sec. It is a very convenient tool for you because of its different features like USB connectivity and software with video-email. The major disadvantage is that you can only use it in a Macintosh-based format.
3. Pixera digital video camera – If you want a higher resolution than DG-1 and Play-and-plug USB microscope, then this one if for you. The resolution of this on PC is 1260X960 while its resolution on Macintosh computers is 1280X1024. This camera can stand alone so the combination of separate microscopes is needed. A C-mount adapter is used to thread the camera onto any microscope. It also chains Macintosh Power PC platforms and Windows 95 or 98.

Conclusion

Microscopy is a relatively new realm of study which started just at the dawn of the last era of human history. There are still areas of improvement and the focus of science is also affected by the ‘bigger is better’ principle. However this common thinking gives way to advancements in the fields of microsciences namely microscopy, nanotechnologies, micropathology, the issues of HIV treatment and cures etc. Now that fields and subfields are unfolding, it is a very profitable and challenging area of study. Microscopy shows that ‘bigger is not always better’.