What is the function of confocal microscope?

Confocal microscopy, most frequently confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) or laser confocal scanning microscopy (LCSM), is an optical imaging technique for increasing optical resolution and contrast of a micrograph by means of using a spatial pinhole to block out-of-focus light in image formation.

What is the disadvantage of confocal microscopy?

Disadvantages of confocal microscopy are limited primarily to the limited number of excitation wavelengths available with common lasers (referred to as laser lines), which occur over very narrow bands and are expensive to produce in the ultraviolet region (56).

Why confocal microscopy is better than fluorescence microscopy?

Confocal microscopy offers several distinct advantages over traditional widefield fluorescence microscopy, including the ability to control depth of field, elimination or reduction of background information away from the focal plane (that leads to image degradation), and the capability to collect serial optical …

What is the use of fluorescence microscopy?

Fluorescent microscopy is often used to image specific features of small specimens such as microbes. It is also used to visually enhance 3-D features at small scales. This can be accomplished by attaching fluorescent tags to anti-bodies that in turn attach to targeted features, or by staining in a less specific manner.

What is the application of fluorescence microscopy in life science?

In the life sciences fluorescence microscopy is a powerful tool which allows the specific and sensitive staining of a specimen in order to detect the distribution of proteins or other molecules of interest. As a result, there is a diverse range of techniques for fluorescent staining of biological samples.

Why to use a confocal microscope?

Confocal microscopy offers several advantages over conventional widefield optical microscopy, including the ability to control depth of field, elimination or reduction of background information away from the focal plane (that leads to image degradation), and the capability to collect serial optical sections from thick specimens. The basic key to the confocal approach is the use of spatial filtering techniques to eliminate out-of-focus light or glare in specimens whose thickness exceeds the

What does confocal mean exactly in confocal microscope?

The Confocal Principle and Microscope Design ” Confocal ” is defined as “having the same focus.” What this means in the microscope is that the final image has the same focus as or the focus corresponds to the point of focus in the object. The object and its image are “confocal.”

What are the principles of microscopy?

Principle of Simple Microscope. A simple microscope works on the principle that when a tiny object is placed within its focus, a virtual, erect and magnified image of the object is formed at the least distance of distinct vision from the eye held close to the lens.

Why do we need a pinhole in a confocal microscope?

By having a confocal pinhole, the microscope is really efficient at rejecting out of focus fluorescent light. The practical effect of this is that your image comes from a thin section of your sample (you have a small depth of field).