Brightfield Microscopes

  • A brightfield microscope is typically used in a general microbiology lab and it uses a glass lenses to magnify objects on a slide The lens of the microscope that is primarily responsible for the magnification of the specimen is the 20x objective lens and a 10x ocular lens what is magnification.
  • There are other kinds of light microscope, including phase contrast and DIC, but they tend to be rather expensive, and for general use a brightfield microscope is more than adequate.
  • In a brightfield microscope the sample is illuminated from below by a collimated beam of light from a bright lamp, and imaged from above by a serious of magnifying lenses.
  • A brightfield microscope is excellent for observing Gram stains, but a phase contrast microscope would be better for viewing live bacteria.
  • In a brightfield microscope, this light is provided by an illuminator, which is typically a high-intensity bulb below the stage.
  • A brightfield microscope is what people commonly call a “Cell Microscope” or a “Biological Microscope”. 
  • The brightfield microscope is arguably the most important piece of equipment in the cytogenetics laboratory.
  • An opaque light stop inserted into a brightfield microscope is used to produce a darkfield image.
  • A brightfield microscope is the type most ordinarily used in the doctor’s office or small lab.
  • The best resolution achieved with a brightfield microscope is 0.2 micrometers.