Hold it upright and support the base with your free hand. The arm supports an inclined body tube , which in turn supports the magnifying elements of the microscope. At the end of the tube is the ocular , one of the magnifying elements. Underneath the body tube and nosepiece is a flat plate, the stage , upon which objects to be examined are placed. Directly beneath the stage opening you will notice a system of lenses, the condenser , which serves to concentrate the light from the illuminator below.
Light plays an extremely important role in the operation of a compound microscope.
The critical importance of light makes necessary its careful adjustment, and several controls are available for this purpose. The iris diaphragm may be found just below the condenser lens system. This control is one of the most important on your instrument. Changes and adjustments in the focus, which are necessary when an object is first placed on the microscope and essential in order to perceive depth, are accomplished by means of coarse and fine adjustment knobs usually located on the arm. Note that the fine and coarse focus knobs are separate on some of our microscopes and combined on others.