MicrobeHunter.com Microscopy Forum

Finally got my SM-LUX-POL in good condition, recently serviced and ready to put to work!

Currently it has
12v 100w lightsource

Pol condenser

170/- 10/0.25 P
160/0.17 NPL FLUOTAR 25/0.55 P
160/0.17 NPL FLUOTAR 40/0.70 P
Objectives

Microscope
https://i.imgur.com/xc5BahV.jpg
One of the first pictures I took with it -- holding the camera in front of the eyepiece.
https://i.imgur.com/nOJgnRN.jpg
It looks much better in person, very happy with it!

In the future I plan on getting quite a few accessories for it including:
Bertrand lens attachment
Ploemopak for incident light
Mechanical stage if I can find one that doesn't cost a small fortune
I would eventually like to get a lower power and higher power objectives

Do I need to stick with P objectives for polarized light work? It seems like the fluotar's and P objectives are rare and expensive, I'm not sure how much of a difference they make.

Microscope and thin section looking good! Congrats!!

I've got an Ortholux II and own a lot of Leitz objectives (Planachromats, Fluotars, Apochromats) without the P for Polarization on them.
I made all my pictures of microcristals in polarized light with them (2,5x to 10x). I cannot compare with P objectives but my pictures look brilliant. With even dark background and no shadows (?) to see.

Looking very nice. Well done.

As to using specialized Pol objectives - I don't believe that is necessary for the average amateur microscopist,

who is most likely to be interested in the appearance of materials rather than in identifying them.

If however you are studying to become a geologist or are hoping to acquire a geologist's skills, then I think they would be worth the extra money.

This extract is from: https://www.microscopyu.com/microscopy- ... objectives

Polarized Light
Unlike most other forms of microscopy, polarized light microscopy produces the best images when a minimum of optical elements are used in the construction of objectives. It is important to ensure that lens elements, optical cements, and antireflection coatings are free of both strain and birefringent materials that might interfere with quantitative assessment of specimen birefringence.