Microscope Objective Lens Configuration for Wide Field and High Resolution
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing microscope objectives struggle to achieve both a wide field of view and high resolving power without deteriorating performance due to comatic aberration, especially when trying to increase scanning speed for virtual slides.
Innovation Solution
The development of a microscope objective with specific lens configurations, including a first lens group with positive refractive power, a second lens group with cemented lenses made of low and high dispersion materials, and a third lens group with negative refractive power, optimized to satisfy conditional expressions for numerical aperture, field number, and aberration correction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If an objective with wide field of view and low magnification is used, then the field number increases, but comatic aberration deteriorates and resolving power decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The objective lens is divided into multiple lens groups (first lens group with positive refractive power, second lens group with positive refractive power including cemented lens, and third lens group with negative refractive power). Each group is positioned at specific intervals and designed with particular refractive index and dispersion characteristics to independently address different aspects of aberration correction while maintaining wide field of view and high resolving power
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs composite lens structures including cemented lenses made of materials with different refractive indices and Abbe numbers (e.g., positive lens with low dispersion and negative lens with high dispersion). This composite approach allows simultaneous correction of chromatic and comatic aberrations while achieving the desired wide field of view and high resolving power
2Measurement precision
If numerical aperture is increased to improve resolving power, then image quality improves, but comatic aberration increases and performance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
Different lens groups are assigned specific local functions: the first lens group with positive refractive power is designed with specific curvature ratios (r11/f and r12/do12) to correct comatic aberration locally, while the second lens group with cemented lenses addresses chromatic aberration, and the third lens group with negative refractive power fine-tunes the overall aberration correction. This localized optimization allows high numerical aperture while controlling comatic aberration
Solution Approach 2:
The patent optimizes specific parameters including the focal length ratio (fG1/f), radius of curvature ratios (r11/f and r12/do12), and material properties (refractive indices and Abbe numbers) of each lens component. By carefully controlling these parameters within defined ranges, the system achieves high numerical aperture while maintaining acceptable comatic aberration levels
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 enables the microscope to achieve a wide field of view and high resolving power while minimizing comatic aberration, allowing for efficient image acquisition and observation with reduced performance deterioration.
Implementation Method 1
a cemented lens that is configured of a lens with positive refractive power that is made of a low dispersion material and a lens with negative refractive power that is made of a high dispersion material
Implementation Method 2
a first lens that is a single lens having a meniscus shape with a concave surface facing the object side, a second lens that is a single lens with positive refractive power, the single lens having a meniscus shape with a concave surface facing the object side
Data Source
AI summary
An objective for a microscope includes, in order from an object side, a first lens group with positive refractive power, a second lens group with positive refractive power, and a third lens group with negative refractive power. When NA represents a numerical aperture of the objective, FN represents a field number of the objective, β represents a magnification of the objective, ε represents an Airy disk diameter on an axis to a d-line of the objective, φmax represents a maximum value of an effective diameter of a lens included in the objective, and hexp represents a radius of an exit pupil of the objective, the objective satisfies the following conditional expressions:0.8≦NA≦1.5 (1)1000≦FN/|β|/ε≦10000 (2)1.7≦φmax/2/hexp/NA≦4 (3).