Steel shims for permanent slides
Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 4:42 pm
I recently received a prepared slide (containing a cross-section of a stone pine needle) that we are using as a standard while trialing some new scopes and analysis software. The slide is prepared in an interesting way - a thin steel ring was glued to a slide to create a well into which the sample was placed, the well filled with a high-optical density mounting medium, and then a coverglass glued on top creating a sealed chamber with the sample inside. I was thinking that similar slides would be easy to prepare at home, using narrow (0.1-0.5 mm) steel shims, which are readily available in machine shops. I measured the ring used on the slide, and its 17mm ID/24mm OD, which is a common size for steel shims, and would nicely work with 25mm circular coverslips.
Clearly this company is using shims (or something very similar) to make their slides, and I think it would work well for making some types of permanent mounts. I couldn't find any protocols for this (e.g. glues and mounting mediums to use, etc), but I'm certain there is a way to do it. Does anyone have a protocol for something similar that they'd care to share?
An image of the stone pine, just to show off how pretty it is:
Clearly this company is using shims (or something very similar) to make their slides, and I think it would work well for making some types of permanent mounts. I couldn't find any protocols for this (e.g. glues and mounting mediums to use, etc), but I'm certain there is a way to do it. Does anyone have a protocol for something similar that they'd care to share?
An image of the stone pine, just to show off how pretty it is: