Patent ID: 9012872
Filing Date: 2015-04-21
Classification: G01N,G02B

Abstract:
1. A method of prism-type TIR microscopy comprising: (a) providing a prism-type TIR microscope with an objective lens having an optical axis and an excitation laser adjustable over a range of angles of incidence between sub-critical TIR angles to nearly 90 degrees to create an illumination spot at or near a prism or slide/sample interface in the microscope's field of view and at or near the optical axis of the objective lens by controlled actuation of one or more laser beam adjustment components between reproducible settings; (b) pre-calibrating the microscope at plural incident angles over the range of angles of incidence of the excitation laser by: (c) providing a sample at the prism or slide/sample interface; (d) automatically adjusting angle of incidence of the excitation laser by retrieving and actuating the one or more laser beam adjustment components to the stored calibrated reproducible settings for each of the plural incident angles so that the illumination spot is automatically optimized relative to the microscope's field of view at each of the incident angles; and (e) imaging the sample at each of the plural incident angles.