Patent ID: 7982948

Claim:
A scanning microscope comprising: a light source that emits illumination light, a scanner that scans the illumination light from the light source in a two-dimensional direction crossing to a light axis, an objective lens that irradiates the illumination light scanned by the scanner to a sample, and collects return light from the sample, a focusing position adjustment section that adjusts a focal position in a light axis direction of the objective lens, a light detector that detect the return light collected by the objective lens, a storage section that stores intensity of the return light detected by the light detector, and positional information of an irradiating position of the illumination light set by the scanner and the focusing position adjustment section while relating the intensity to the positional information, an image processing section that forms a plurality of two-dimensional images parallel to the light axis on the basis of the intensity of the return light and the positional information of the irradiating position stored in the storage section with a time interval, and processes the two-dimensional images so as to detect a moving distance along a light axis direction of a pointed area of the sample, and a controller that controls the focusing position adjustment section so as to correct a light condensing position of the illumination light in accordance with the moving distance of the pointed area detected by the image processing section.