This microscope was introduced by Camille Sébastien Nachet in 1833, and was one of the first microscopes to feature crossed-polarized illumination for the examination of birefringent samples.

The body tube contains two Nicole prisms that are oriented with the light vibration directions being perpendicular to one another. One prism is fitted underneath the stage, while the other is placed in the removable eyepiece, just below the intermediate image plane. The microscope has a brass body tube that is fastened to the central pillar with a rack mount. A circular stage is also mounted in a fixed position on the pillar and has two spring clips to secure the specimen in place. Focusing is accomplished with a knurled knob that translates the body tube up and down in the rackwork. The substage plano-concave mirror is used to concentrate light into the single-lens condenser. Accessories include several interchangeable objectives and a higher power eyepiece.

BACK TO NINETEENTH CENTURY MICROSCOPES

Questions or comments? Send us an email.

© 1998-2022 by Michael W. Davidson and The Florida State University. All Rights Reserved. No images, graphics, scripts, or applets may be reproduced or used in any manner without permission from the copyright holders. Use of this website means you agree to all of the Legal Terms and Conditions set forth by the owners.

This website is maintained by our
Graphics & Web Programming Team
in collaboration with Optical Microscopy at the
National High Magnetic Field Laboratory.

Last modification: Friday, Nov 13, 2015 at 01:19 PM

Access Count Since June 9, 1999: 53133

For more information on microscope manufacturers,
use the buttons below to navigate to their websites: