XPL-2 Series Polarizing Microscopes

I. What is a Polarizing Microscope?

A polarizing microscope is a type of microscope that utilizes polarized light to study the optical properties of materials. It is primarily used in geological research to study geological specimens, hence it’s also referred to as a petrographic microscope. Recently, it has found broader applications in medicine and biology as well.

The characteristic feature of a polarizing microscope is its ability to transform ordinary light into polarized light for microscopic examination, aiming to identify whether the material exhibits single or double refraction. Double refraction is a fundamental characteristic of crystals. Therefore, polarizing microscopes have extensive applications in mineralogy, polymers, fibers, glass, semiconductors, and chemistry.

In biology, many structures also exhibit double refraction, necessitating the use of polarizing microscopes to distinguish them. In botany, this includes the identification of fibers, chromosomes, spindle bodies, starch grains, cell walls, and crystals in cytoplasm and tissues. In plant pathology, the invasion of pathogens often leads to changes in tissue chemical properties, which can be identified using polarizing microscopes.

II. Principles of Polarizing Microscopes:

The principle of a polarizing microscope involves passing light through a polarizer, followed by passing it through the sample. The transmitted light perpendicular to the polarizing plane will be blocked by the analyzer. The light passing through the analyzer typically has linear polarization perpendicular to the direction of the analyzer. When observing an object through a polarizing microscope, you can see two images of the same object. One image will appear dark, and the other bright. This is because light waves become polarized as they reflect off different surfaces and angles, so they do not all have the same orientation when they reach your eyes.

III. Reflective and Transmissive Polarizing Microscopes:

Polarizing microscopes are used to observe chemicals, rocks, and minerals through transmitted and/or reflected light. Reflective polarizing microscopes are used to examine opaque samples, also known as ore microscopes; transmissive polarizing microscopes are used to examine transparent or semi-transparent samples, also known as petrographic microscopes. Apart from transmissive polarizing microscopes, reflective and transmissive polarizing microscopes are the most commonly used types in biological, cytological, histological, pharmaceutical, and pharmacological research.

IV. Performance of XPL-2 Series Polarizing Microscopes:

1. Conventional detection using transmissive/reflected polarizing microscopes.
2. Widely applied in crystallography, geology, analytical chemistry, medicine, biosciences, forensics, environmental sciences, pharmaceuticals, toxicology, asbestos analysis, and more.
3. Capable of single polarization, orthogonal polarization, and colonoscopic observation.

V. Technical Specifications of XPL-2 Series Polarizing Microscopes

XPL-2 Technical Specifications

XP-221 Technical Specifications