OPTARC x40 User manual

OptArc x40 dry and x100 oil
Objectives
User Guide
Document created: 18.09.2022, Last edited: 18.09.2022
Manual prepared by OptArc − Designers
and manu acturers o custom optical and
optoelectronic systems using 3D printing
rapid prototyping and based in the UK.
See optarc.co.uk or details.

Sa ety In ormation
Identi ication o risk
Throughout this manual please take heed of warnings given in bold text and
highlighted yellow to avoid possi le damage to equipment and/or harm to people.
Risk to vulnerable groups
OptArc la supplies and equipment are not toys. They contain small parts which may
come loose, glass components that may splinter or reak or otherwise present a
choking or sharp o ject hazard or chemical hazard. Please do not let babies or
young children play with or gain access to any aspect o this product. Older
children should only access this product with close appropriate adult
supervision. Likewise keep this product away rom pets.
OptArc x40 and x100 oil Objectives Page 2 of 16 User Guide v1.0

Contents
Safety Information.............................................................................................................2
Identification of risk.......................................................................................................2
Risk to vulnera le groups.............................................................................................2
Download link for PDF version of this Manual..................................................................4
Legal Information..............................................................................................................5
Copyright.......................................................................................................................5
Trade Marks..................................................................................................................5
Limitations of Use.........................................................................................................5
Disclaimer.....................................................................................................................5
Introduction........................................................................................................................6
Need for a condenser lens................................................................................................7
...........................................................................................................................................8
...........................................................................................................................................8
How to insert and remove a specimen for use with the x40 (dry) o jective.....................9
How to insert and remove a specimen for use with the x100 (oil immersion) o jective.12
Maintenance....................................................................................................................14
Immersion medium.....................................................................................................14
Cleaning......................................................................................................................14
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Download link or PDF version o this Manual
OptArc x40 and x100 oil Objectives Page 4 of 16 User Guide v1.0
You can download the latest version of this User’s Manual
as a PDF file from the Support section of the OptArc
we site via this link:
https://www.optarc.co.uk/support/

Legal In ormation
Copyright
This user’s manual is copyright © 2022 y Dr Paul J. Tadrous. All rights reserved.
Trade Marks
OptArc and the OptArc logo are Registered Trade Marks of Dr Paul J. Tadrous
(registered with the UK Intellectual Property Office).
Limitations o Use
These products are released to e used for research and educational purposes only.
Disclaimer
Only competent people trained in the use of microscopy and the handling of la oratory
equipment should use this product.
Dr Paul J. Tadrous, TadPath and OptArc cannot accept any lia ility for any loss or
damages that may occur from the misuse or mis-handling of this product.
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Introduction
The OptArc high magnification o jectives (x40 and x100 oil) allow fine morphological
features to e seen at magnifications of x400 and x1000 when used with a x10
eyepiece.
Unlike the lower magnification o jectives, these lenses have a long casing that
restricts the clearance o the specimen rom the lens. This means that it is
relatively easy or the specimen or slide to come into physical contact with the
objective lens and this may cause damage to the specimen and/or the objective
lens i not handled correctly.
The purpose of this manual is to provide the necessary guidance to minimise the risk of
adverse consequences to the sample and o jectives y descri ing safe methods of
use.
These issues are also relevant regardless of the supplier of the o jective lens – even if
you are using lenses that are not supplied y OptArc. Also, even if you are an
experienced microscopist with traditional ench top la oratory microscopes, the unique
design of the PUMA microscope poses its own challenges. So please read this manual
fully efore first fitting or using any high magnification o jective lens with a PUMA
microscope
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Need or a condenser lens
The x40 o jective has a numerical aperture (NA) of 0.65 and the x100 oil has a
maximum NA of 1.25. These o jectives will, therefore, only give good quality images if
they are used with a wide angled eam illumination system. Without such illumination
the images will appear ‘tinny’, hypercontrasted, dark, overly refractile and lacking in
resolution.
Such an illumination system is conventionally
achieved y means of a condenser lens.
For transillumination the PUMA A e condenser
is recommended (figure 1).
For co-axial epi-illumination the o jective lens
itself will act as a well-matched condenser
system.
The full Köhler illuminator is not a pre-requisite
ut it will provide good quality full-field flat trans-
illumination when used in conjunction with the
A e condenser
For more detail a out condenser lens systems
see the following videos on the PUMA
microscope YouTu e channel:
A e condenser video
https://youtu. e/2wpsvA2cQgQ
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Figure 1. The optional PUMA A e
condenser upgrade is recommended
for use with high magnification
o jectives.

Epi-illumination video
https://youtu. e/cAEB10K8PqI
Köhler illumination video
https://youtu. e/XEE-el7vC5k
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How to insert and remove a specimen or use with
the x40 (dry) objective
Because the PUMA microscope does not have a swing out o jective turret and space
on the stage is very limited (compared to a conventional ench-top microscope), there
is a danger that inserting a slide onto the stage with the objective in place could
result in an edge or corner o the glass slide coming into contact with the ront
lens o the objective and scratching it. This will permanently damage the o jective
and cause loss of image clarity. A non-coverslipped slide or specimen has an even
greater risk of the specimen contaminating or scratching the lens if it comes into
contact.
For that reason the recommended procedure for inserting and removing a cover-
slipped glass slide when using a high magnification o jective is as follows:
1. With a low power lens in place (like the x4 lens that comes with a Foundation scope
kit), insert your slide onto the stage and focus the microscope.
2. Move the slide till the the area of interest is in the centre of the low power field of
view.
3. Raise the focus platform y two full rotations of the fine focus gear (ensure you are
raising it – to increase the distance etween the slide on the stage and the o jective
fixed to the focus platform – not lowering it – see figure 2).
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Figure 2. Turn the fine (or coarse) gear in the anti-clockwise direction to raise the
focus plate and lift the o jective away from the specimen on the stage.

4. Remove the optical tu e from the microscope and change the o jective to your high
power o jective. Ensure it is screwed in fully to the RMS thread.
5. Re-insert the optical tu e. When fully inserted look closely from the side to ensure
there is still a gap etween the front lens of the o jective and the slide on the stage. If
there is no gap then you should raise the focus plate till you see at least a 1 mm gap
(see figure 3)
You can now focus the microscope with the fine focus wheel while looking down an
ocular lens till the specimen is in focus. If you find you are making excessive turns of
the fine focus gear (more than two full turns) then look again at the gap etween the
o jective and the slide to ensure you have not gone too far down and made contact
with the slide. If you have made contact then raise the focus platform with the focus
gear until you get at least (a out) 2 mm clearance etween the o jective and the
specimen and try again. Ensuring that some contrasting feature is present in the field of
view will assist the focussing endeavour. Another potential pitfall is that the focus
platform gets stuck so does not lower when you turn the focus gear. See the video on
trou leshooting the Z stage for more information a out that and how to fix it:
https://youtu. e/ffLx28N85u
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Figure 3. Looking at the x40 o jective from the side, the slide will e in focus when
the working distance (the gap etween the lower lens of the o jective and the top
surface of the coverslip) is a out 1 mm, as shown. This is also a out the same
distance as the pitch of the thread in the focus post olt (seen on the left).