What is spinning disc confocal?

Spinning disk confocal microscopy (SDCM) represents an alternative to LSCM. Rather than a single pinhole, a SDCM has hundreds of pinholes arranged in spirals on an opaque disk (figure 2), which rotates at high speeds. The pinholes in the disk are arranged so that every part of the image is scanned as the disk is spun.

What is a confocal microscope used to look at?

The confocal microscope is said to have a very small depth of field. The confocal microscope is used to take a series of pictures as it focuses at different depths through the cell. Only the parts of the imaginary cell organelle pictured above are in the plane of focus that is detected at any one time.

What microscope is used for live cell imaging?

Microscopy techniques that can capture live cell images include confocal microscopy, phase contrast microscopy, fluorescent microscopy, and quantitative phase contrast microscopy.

How does a spinning disk work?

The disks are fixed to a common shaft that is driven at high speed by an electric motor. When the disks spin, and the scanner is coupled to a microscope with the pinhole disk located in its primary image plane, an array of focused laser beams scan across the specimen.

Does deconvolution improve resolution?

Deconvolution is an image processing technique used to improve the contrast and resolution of images captured using an optical microscope. Deconvolution seeks to remove or reassign this out of focus light present in digital images, thus improving the resolution of the final micrograph.

How does Super resolution microscopy work?

Super-resolution microscopy (SRM) encompasses multiple techniques that achieve higher resolution than traditional light microscopy. As light passes through the surrounding medium in a light microscope, a single point of light (called a fluorophore) will appear blurry.

Which microscope is used to see bacteria?

The compound microscope can be used to view a variety of samples, some of which include: blood cells, cheek cells, parasites, bacteria, algae, tissue, and thin sections of organs. Compound microscopes are used to view samples that can not be seen with the naked eye.

Why are spinning disk confocal microscopes so important?

Spinning disk confocal microscopes are emerging as a powerful tool for rapid spatial and temporal imaging of living cells. Although the technique was originally introduced over 40 years ago, recent improvements in microscope optical design and camera technology have significantly expanded the versatility and potential of this approach.

Where does the emission light from a Zeiss microscope go?

Emission light from the specimen passes back through confocal pinholes in the Nipkow disk closer to the microscope port and is directed via a dichromatic beamsplitter to a mirror in the lower part of the unit housing.

How does a confocal laser scanning microscope work?

Confocal laser scanning microscopes use multiple mirrors (typically 2 or 3 scanning linearly along the x- and the y- axes) to scan the laser across the sample and “descan” the image across a fixed pinhole and detector. Spinning-disk ( Nipkow disk) confocal microscopes use a series of moving pinholes on a disc to scan spots of light.

When did Gordon Kino create the spinning disk microscope?

Single-sided spinning disk confocal microscopes designed by Gordon Kino and Jeff Lichtman during the late 1980s utilized the same set of pinholes for both illumination and detection. These microscopes featured a simpler optical train that incorporated a number of features intended to minimize glare from the illuminated disk surface.