The Walter Products 3000F-100-LED Basic Monocular Compound Microscope has a 10x widefield eyepiece with pointer, a forward-facing nosepiece with four DIN achromatic objectives that are parcentered and parfocal, LED illumination, nested coarse and fine focus, 1.25 NA Abbe condenser with iris diaphragm, and a mechanical stage. The monocular viewing head has a fixed inclination to reduce eye and neck strain, and rotation capability to enable sharing. An eyepiece pointer is used to identify features for students. A forward-facing nosepiece eases changing objectives. Achromatic objectives provide color correction of magnified images. Parcentered and parfocal objectives ensure that the image stays centered and focused when the magnification is changed. The 40xR objective is retractable and spring-loaded to prevent damage to the slide or objective when focusing. The 100xR objective is also an oil objective that provides increased resolution over a standard objective. A basic compound microscope is used in classroom, home school, and hobbyist settings for inspection and dissection of specimens when two-dimensional images are desired.

The microscope has lower (diascopic) brightfield illumination that transmits light up through the specimen for enhanced visibility of translucent and transparent objects. Brightfield (BF) illumination allows the specimen to absorb light, resulting in a dark image on a light background. The LED light source provides bright, cool light for working with temperature-sensitive or live specimens. The Abbe condenser can be adjusted to control the distance of the light from the stage and has an iris diaphragm to optimize the amount of light illuminating the specimen. The mechanical stage locks the slide into place and provides precise slide manipulation along the X- and Y-axes. Coaxial coarse and fine focus knobs are nested to speed focusing for left-and right-handed viewers. A stage stop prevents the stage or specimen from coming into contact with the objectives.

Microscopes are instruments used to enhance the resolution of an object or image. Types include compound, stereo, or digital. Compound microscopes use a compound optical system with an objective lens and an eyepiece. Stereo microscopes show object depth in a three-dimensional image. Digital microscopes are used to display an image on a monitor, rather than looking through a lens. Microscopes can have monocular (one), binocular (two), or trinocular (three) eyepieces, with varying magnification abilities. Magnification ability refers to the size of an image. Resolution, also known as resolvant power, refers to the clarity of the image. The interaction between field of view (FOV), numerical aperture (NA), and working distance (WD) determines resolution. Microscopes can control magnification through a fixed focus, or through a range of adjustments. They can also utilize LED, fluorescent, and mirror light sources to help control viewing capabilities. Microscopes are widely used in education, lab research, biology, metallurgy, engineering, chemistry, manufacturing, and in the medical, forensic science, and veterinary industries.

Walter Products distributes microscopy and laboratory equipment and supplies. The company, founded in 1987, is headquartered in Windsor, ON, Canada.

What’s in the Box?

• Walter Products 3000F-100-LED Basic Monocular Compound Microscope
• WF10x eyepiece
• 4x DIN achromatic objective
• 10x DIN achromatic objective
• 40xR (retractable) DIN achromatic objective
• 100xR (oil, retractable) DIN achromatic objective
• Dust cover
• Instructions