How to make an electron microscope ?

Everything relating to microscopy hardware: Objectives, eyepieces, lamps and more.
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Kalleboy
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How to make an electron microscope ?

#1 Post by Kalleboy » Fri Jan 06, 2017 12:19 pm

Hello
Regular people used to make electron microscopes by themselves as early as 1940-60 ?
- Like Alvar Wilska (Country= Finland. and we live isolated near to the cold northpole and are mostly agricultural country)
So:
- Is it possible to turn like a basic Zeiss microscope to an electron microscope ?
- What parts do I need ?
- How is it possible these old people built electron microscopes back when 99% of country's people were poor, uneducated and no google existed ?

Peter
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Re: How to make an electron microscope ?

#2 Post by Peter » Fri Jan 06, 2017 7:00 pm

Hi Kalleboy,
I will try to answer your questions, others may answer better and/or more fully.

- Is it possible to turn like a basic Zeiss microscope to an electron microscope ?
No, a light microscope uses "glass" lenses were as an electron microscope uses electromagnetic lenses.

- What parts do I need ?
A high vacuum pump, an ultra microtome (capable of cutting sections much thinner than one micron), an electron gun, electromagnetic lenses, suitable power supply, and a good grounding in physics. Plus mechanical bits to hold it all together. To mention but a few.

- How is it possible these old people built electron microscopes back when 99% of country's people were poor, uneducated and no google existed ?
They educated themselves, had a "can do will do attitude, and didn't waste time on things like the interweb.

Hope this helps.
Peter.

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zzffnn
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Re: How to make an electron microscope ?

#3 Post by zzffnn » Fri Jan 06, 2017 7:35 pm

No sarcasm intended, but I am guessing you probably won't be able to build an EM yourself, if you need to ask what parts are needed.

I won't call those engineers "regular people", if they could built an EM in 1940-1960. I consider myself pretty nerdy/ geeky (not normal/regular), but I don't think I can or will build an EM myself in my life.

I also think that it is one thing to build an EM, but another thing to get high resolution images. Like one can easily build a poor quality light microscope with single ball lens that magnifies to 200-400x, but the resolution won't get to what a regular NA 0.65 objective can provide.

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billben74
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Re: How to make an electron microscope ?

#4 Post by billben74 » Fri Jan 06, 2017 8:48 pm

Also you need to be able to coat the subject in a very uniform coating of gold.
This is hard.
See http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/ind ... k-sem.html
for someone who has an electron microscope in their dining room.
He didn't build it though.

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hkv
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Re: How to make an electron microscope ?

#5 Post by hkv » Fri Jan 06, 2017 10:07 pm

Kalleboy wrote:Hello

- How is it possible these old people built electron microscopes back when 99% of country's people were poor, uneducated and no google existed ?
Here is your answer. Google did not exist. These guys actually had to learn something about real physics and not only google for quick fixes. ;) Would indeed be a very interesting project!
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Kalleboy
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Re: How to make an electron microscope ?

#6 Post by Kalleboy » Sat Jan 07, 2017 8:43 am

Basic light microscope is ok for looking large objects like 0.1mm
- But I really aim for electron microscope quality 1e-6mm(1 nanometer). :D
Everybody now talks about building nanorobots that enter humans. This is not possible with even the priciest Zeiss light microscopes which possibility to zoom is a bit overhyped. These nanobots should bring jobs if succeeded. Now lots of unemployment and no new real innovations made. People are just circling and idling.

I would like to buy a sweet small sized electron microscope.

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Pat Thielen
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Re: How to make an electron microscope ?

#7 Post by Pat Thielen » Sat Jan 07, 2017 9:03 am

Kalleboy wrote:Basic light microscope is ok for looking large objects like 0.1mm
- But I really aim for electron microscope quality 1e-6mm(1 nanometer). :D
Everybody now talks about building nanorobots that enter humans. This is not possible with even the priciest Zeiss light microscopes which possibility to zoom is a bit overhyped. These nanobots should bring jobs if succeeded. Now lots of unemployment and no new real innovations made. People are just circling and idling.

I would like to buy a sweet small sized electron microscope.

You can buy used SEMs, sometimes at an affordable price. Of course I would have no idea how to set one of these up or how well they work. For example, here's one for $5000.00 -- It may not be in the best of shape, though. I would suggest you do a lot of research before you look at buying one of these things; I don't think they're for the faint of heart.

http://www.labx.com/item/amray-1810-ele ... pe/3071624


And, oddly enough, you can buy them on Ebay. I wouldn't mind having one either! :D
Pat Thielen
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Oktagon
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Re: How to make an electron microscope ?

#8 Post by Oktagon » Mon Jan 09, 2017 6:45 am

Forget about SEM. I think much better idea is to buy a small PWR (Pressurized Water Reactor), or LMCR (Lequid Metal-Cooled Reactor) and compete with National Grid by selling electrical power to your neighbors! You can buy one surplus from a decommissioned Russian submarine! Just put it in your basement, replace the fuel rods (store the old ones in your bath tub under water!). You may need to adjust the rod placement matrix and control rods positions, but it's easy. Just check for even stream formation and temperature distribution accross active zone. You will also need a funny instrument called Geiger Counter. If the waiter is boiling and the the counter is making allot of high pitch screaming noises (not clicking!), it means everything is good and your project is working!


....sorry for the sarcasm.

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