Crystals of amino acids, caffeine and THC

Here you can post pictures and videos to show others.
Post Reply
Message
Author
User avatar
RobBerdan
Posts: 124
Joined: Tue Nov 20, 2018 3:26 pm
Location: Calgary
Contact:

Crystals of amino acids, caffeine and THC

#1 Post by RobBerdan » Fri Jan 28, 2022 8:35 pm

I enjoy making crystals to study in polarized light during the cold winter days in Canada when temperatures reach down to - 30 C as the ponds are frozen.
I am attaching some pictures and I also posted an article on my web site where I explain how to make the crystals for those new to photographing crystals, alng with references.
Cannabis is legal in Canada so I thought I would try making some crystals - which I s till need to work on as I can't produce them consistently.

https://www.canadiannaturephotographer. ... light.html

Crystals photographed in polarized light with a full wave retardation plate - details of how they were prepared are on my web site.

Alanine and Glutamine crystals  4X
Alanine and Glutamine crystals 4X
s266_DSC_0069.jpg (212.38 KiB) Viewed 3576 times
Alananine and Glutamine crystals 4X
Alananine and Glutamine crystals 4X
s266_DSC_0115.jpg (302.37 KiB) Viewed 3576 times
Caffeine crystals 4X
Caffeine crystals 4X
caffeine_s189_DSC_0278.jpg (336.15 KiB) Viewed 3576 times
THC Cannabis crystal 4X
THC Cannabis crystal 4X
s263_THC_DSC_0082.jpg (270.25 KiB) Viewed 3576 times
Caffeine crystals 4X
Caffeine crystals 4X
s189_DSC_0269.jpg (268.25 KiB) Viewed 3576 times

Microscopy_is_fun
Posts: 130
Joined: Sun Nov 21, 2021 6:11 pm

Re: Crystals of amino acids, caffeine and THC

#2 Post by Microscopy_is_fun » Fri Jan 28, 2022 9:52 pm

Hi Rob,

amazing colours, and perfectly captured textures!

Javier
Posts: 806
Joined: Tue May 09, 2017 11:19 am
Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Re: Crystals of amino acids, caffeine and THC

#3 Post by Javier » Sun Jan 30, 2022 7:17 pm

Brilliant!

biofilmer86
Posts: 30
Joined: Fri Dec 25, 2020 3:30 am

Re: Crystals of amino acids, caffeine and THC

#4 Post by biofilmer86 » Fri Jan 05, 2024 4:06 am

I have a question Rob,
On your website you said you used Scotch tape for retarder / wave plates (bottom of this page) https://www.canadiannaturephotographer. ... light.html

Are you referring to the red label transparent Scotch tape? All I have on hand is double-sided (yellow) and magic tape (green) which don't work. I do have 11mm wide tape of unknown brand that does work but was hoping to find wider tape.

https://www.scotchbrand.com/3M/en_US/p/ ... ear-tapes/

Jose Antonio Mena
Posts: 78
Joined: Sun Nov 27, 2022 7:03 pm
Location: Santander

Re: Crystals of amino acids, caffeine and THC

#5 Post by Jose Antonio Mena » Sat Jan 06, 2024 9:12 pm

hi:

As retarder, for increase the rainbow effect in crystals microphotos, you can use different materials: mica sheets, plastic films (the celophan used as envelope of different products), or proper optical retarders (better 1 wave or lambda plates; the good ones are very expensive, hundreds of euros, oriented to cuantitative analisys of substances and christography, far from your needs, don´t wate your money in them).

To check the efect of the optical retarder, you can see what color produces turning the retarder between two linear polarizer sheets in cross position (no need of microscope; the position of polarizers must give you a dark image, with the retarder will apear one color.

One easy way to check is to put a linear polarizer sheet in front the screen of your laptop, oriented for get a dark image, and introduce then between the screen and the polarizer the material that you want to check as reatarder: look for vivid and uniform colors.

Try to use a clear and clean sheet of retarder material for avoid artifacts in the image get in the microscope. This is why the Scott tape, despite it´s a retarder, isn´t the better material compared with another no cost materials you can test.

I put the retarder sheet over the linear polarizin filter that is over the field lense, far from the condenser iris for avoid the effect in the image of any damage in the retarder sheet.

I get celophane film free asking for it in a flower shop...

In the expensive and oriented microscope polarizing systems, the analyzer, over the objective nosepiece and below the binocular head, have a slot for introduce different retarders/compensators : 1/4 or full wave, a quartz wedge (I have got one from PZO "cheap", for about 45 euros) that give you a variable retarder between the two orthogonal polarized ligth beams, or other variable retarders (Bereck and others).

Try and check

Regards

JA

Post Reply