The entire student laboratory handout for this lab is presented below. The instructions are tailored to specific equipment, cells and fluorescent probes, but they could be modified for other probes and different cell preparations. Link to Our Image Pages Back to Cell Biology Home Page Background on Fluorescence Microscopy Fluorescence microscopy is used to detect structures, molecules or proteins within the cell.
Fluorescent molecules absorb light at one wavelength and emit light at another, longer wavelength.
Electrons in this state are unstable and will return to the ground state, releasing energy in the form of light and heat. This emission of energy is fluorescence. The dye glows brightly against a dark background because only the emitted wavelength is allowed to reach the eyepieces or camera port of the microscope. Most microscopes are designed using epi-illumination. In epi-illumination excitation, light goes through the objective lens and illuminates the object.