Although similar to the common brightfield microscope, the polarized light microscope contains additional components that are unique to instruments of this class. Also built into the microscope base is a collector lens, the field iris aperture diaphragm, and a first surface reflecting mirror that directs light through a port placed directly beneath the condenser in the central optical pathway of the microscope. Microscopy - Overview - Chemistry LibreTexts Next, focus the specimen with the 10x objective and then rotate the nosepiece until a lower magnification objective (usually the 5x) is above the specimen. Disadvantages of Electron Microscopes - Microscope and Laboratory When illuminated with white (polarized) light, birefringent specimens produce circular distributions of interference colors (Figure 2), with the inner circles, called isochromes, consisting of increasingly lower order colors (see the Michel-Levy interference color chart, Figure 4). An awareness of the basic principles underlying polarized light microscopy is also essential for the effective interpretation of differential interference contrast (DIC). Polarized light microscopy: principles and practice - PubMed These components control the size, intensity, and distribution of light in the illumination field. When a microscope enlarges an image of a 1 mm object to 10 mm, this is a 10 x magnification. Differential Interference Contrast - How DIC works, Advantages and The crossed polarizers image reveals that there are several minerals present, including quartz in gray and whites and micas in higher order colors. Nikon Instruments | Nikon Global | Nikon Small World. enlarging the image of the object. When both the analyzer and polarizer are inserted into the optical path, their vibration azimuths are positioned at right angles to each other. Most rotatable polarizers are graduated to indicate the rotation angle of the transmission azimuth, while analyzers are usually fixed into position (although advanced models can be rotated either 90 or 360 degrees). The former orientation is preferred because it can be set by comparison with a polarizer whose vibration direction is known. After exiting the specimen, the light components become out of phase with each other, but are recombined with constructive and destructive interference when they pass through the analyzer.