3 Microscopy and Staining I. Principles Microscopy is the technology of making very small things visible to the human eye.
Most microbes are so small that they are measured in micrometers or nanometers.
A typical bacterial cell is about 1 u m while a virus is more in the range of 10-100 nm. Remember, Leeuwenhoek was probably the 1 st to see microorganisms in the 1600's with his invention of his simple microscopes. Refraction is the bending of light as it passes from one medium to another of different density. Immersion oil, which has the same index of refraction as glass, is used to replace air and to prevent refraction at a glass-air interface. The total magnification of a light microscope is calculated by multiplying the magnifying power of the objective lens by the magnifying power of the ocular lens.