Microscopy - Light microscopes and Electron microscopes

Question 1

What are the advantages of light microscopes?

Answer 1

• Small
• Easy to use
• Relatively cheap
• Can be used to see singular cells

Question 2

What are the disadvantages of light microscopes?

Answer 2

• Rely on light (wavelength of 0.2 µm). Their resolution is also limited to 0.2µm. This means that any details less than 0.2µm will appear blurry.
• Not good enough to study the subcellular structures within cells. e.g. mitochondria

Question 3

What are the advantages of electron microscopes?

Answer 3

• Use electrons instead of light (electrons have a wavelength of 0.1nm). Their maximum resolution is 0.1nm, meaning that tinier details can been seen compared to the light microscope.
• They can be used to study subcellular structures e.g. mitochondria

Question 4

What are the disadvantages of electron microscopes?

Answer 4

• Very big
• Very expensive
• Hard to use (usually only used by scientists in laboratories)

Question 5

Which microscope is generally better for studying cells? Why?

Answer 5

• Electron microscopes - as they have a resolution of 0.1nm compared to light microscopes having a resolution of 0.2µm.
• This is 2000x better resolution, meaning that electron microscopes can give images with a much higher magnification without going blurry.