Immersion Microscope Objective Aberration Correction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional immersion microscope objectives struggle to achieve both high numerical aperture (NA) and high aberration performance over a wide field of view, which is necessary for advanced biological microscopy applications.
Innovation Solution
The design of an immersion microscope objective with a four-group configuration, including a first lens group with a planoconvex and meniscus lens, a second lens group with cemented lenses, a third lens group with a Double Gauss structure, and a fourth lens group with meniscus lenses, arranged in a specific order to satisfy conditional expressions that correct Petzval sum, coma, and chromatic aberrations, ensuring a wide field of view and high NA.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional immersion microscope objectives are designed with high numerical aperture, then resolving power is improved, but aberration performance deteriorates over wide field of view
Solution Approach 1:
The objective lens is divided into four distinct lens groups (first through fourth lens groups) with specific configurations. The first lens group contains a cemented lens with a planoconvex lens and meniscus lens, the second lens group includes multiple cemented lenses, the third lens group has a meniscus-shaped cemented lens, and the fourth lens group contains multiple meniscus lenses. This segmentation allows each group to address specific aberrations while maintaining high NA.
Solution Approach 2:
Each lens group is designed with specific local optical properties and configurations tailored to correct particular types of aberrations. The first lens group's cemented lens configuration addresses spherical aberration, the third lens group's meniscus shape targets coma aberration, and the fourth lens group's multiple meniscus lenses address chromatic aberration. This local optimization enables high aberration performance across the wide field of view.
2Area of stationary object
If microscope objectives are designed for wide field of view, then observation area is improved, but aberration correction becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The four-lens-group segmentation allows distribution of aberration correction tasks across multiple specialized sub-systems. The first lens group handles spherical aberration, the second group addresses field curvature, the third group corrects coma, and the fourth group manages chromatic aberration. This division enables effective aberration correction across the entire wide field of view.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention employs specific parameter relationships, including the conditional expression 2 ≤ h1/h2 ≤ 4 where h1 is the axial marginal ray height at the object-side lens surface of the third lens group and h2 is the axial marginal ray height at the image-side lens surface. This parameter control optimizes ray height distribution to correct off-axis aberrations across the wide field of view.
3Manufacturing precision
If lens groups are arranged to correct off-axis aberrations, then aberration performance is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The objective lens is segmented into four functional lens groups, each with a specific configuration optimized for correcting particular off-axis aberrations. The first lens group uses a cemented lens with planoconvex and meniscus elements, the second group employs multiple cemented lenses, the third group uses a meniscus-shaped cemented lens, and the fourth group contains multiple meniscus lenses. This segmentation provides systematic aberration correction.
Solution Approach 2:
Each lens group is designed with local optical characteristics specifically tailored to address particular aberration types. The meniscus shapes, cemented lens configurations, and relative positions are locally optimized to correct off-axis aberrations efficiently, making the overall complex system manageable through modular design.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration effectively corrects off-axis aberrations and ensures a high resolving power and flatness over a wide field of view, supporting high NA and aberration performance, even with excitation light of varying wavelengths, thereby enhancing the capabilities of biological microscopes.
Implementation Method 1
a first lens group that consists of a cemented lens and has a positive refractive power, the cemented lens consisting of a planoconvex lens having a plane surface facing an object and a first meniscus lens having a concave surface facing the object
Data Source
AI summary
An immersion microscope objective includes a first lens group that consists of a first cemented lens consisting of a planoconvex lens and a first meniscus lens, the first meniscus lens having a thickness that is greater than a radius of curvature of a lens surface on an image side of the first meniscus lens, a second lens group that includes a plurality of second cemented lenses, a third lens group that consists of a third cemented lens, and a fourth lens group that includes a fourth cemented lens consisting of a plurality of meniscus lenses. The objective satisfies the relationship 2≤h1/h2≤4, where h1 indicates an axial marginal ray height at a lens surface of the third cemented lens that is closest to an object, and h2 indicates an axial marginal ray height at a lens surface of the third cemented lens that is closest to an image.