A holographic microscope for just $250
November 6, 2012
Holographic microscope (credit: Atsushi Shiraki et al.)
You can build a holographic microscope for $250 (for parts), MIT Technology Review Physics arXiv Blog reports.
Holographic microscopes record the 3D shape of tiny objects such as cells in high resolution, unlike traditional microscopes, which have a tiny field of view and shallow depth of field.
With a holographic microscope, you make a hologram of the sample: split a laser beam in two, use one as a reference beam and bounce the other off the sample to record the pattern of phase shifts that this produces using a digital camera. Recombining the beams produces an interference pattern that can be analyzed to retrieve 3D information about the sample in high resolution.
Kisarazu National College of Technology in Japan experimenters have provided plans (Ref. below) for building a small portable digital holographic microscope using a web camera, a small solid state laser, an optical pinhole, and free open-source software.
Comments (10)
by asiwel
Yes, this sounds like great fun and suitable for high school biology classes. A couple of pictures, maybe a video of a hologram, a step-by-step list to sort of explain the process would have been great. Of course if those things are not readily available, that maybe goes beyond the resources here in our newsletter.
On another completely different note – when can we expect a spell-checking comment box here (like several other science newletters offer). Thank you.
by high carbfoods
We are told about the multiverses existence by science. Does this device prove it at lay level so that all doubts vanish while casting serious doubts about modern theories. Is this possibly a application link to the unknown from the known?
by JC
Make the parts kit easily available. Record an online course on how to assemble it. Provide a set of online courses on how to use it. Watch the results of 100k students using it in ways we never imagined!
by asiwel
Yes, I agree very much with this comment about this and similar sorts of things that students and teachers and home-brewers/hobbyists can build and use. Software could be easily downloaded that would run on open-platforms.
by DickA
A great project, but not enough info on software for me to duplicate.
Such a shame.
by Marcos Marin
what is the latency of this? I’ll consider respecting it when I can shoot real-time movies of my diybio chimeras… intracellulary of course.
Coupled with my rig for assembling arbitrarily large dna directly from a computer editor, which would put that credit stealer (check human genome history) to shame called craig venter, I’d be all set.
by Antonio Carvalho
This “democratization” of really advanced tools enables incredible possibilities to emerge. I can’t wait to see what people can do with this.
by Marcos Marin
Fala xará, tudo blz?:-)
by robert indsay
Combined with 3D printing – this brings a new era of precision to cottage industries – imagine model airplanes the size of flies – or robots the size of ants – now imagine making an army of these armed with sensors and what its going to do to corporate and governmental spying!!!
by Gorden Russell
robert indsay, have you seen that DARPA is working on a robot bee? Imagine what those will do to al-Quaida bomb builders? Drop a swarm via Predator and they fly into his window and sting only him. No women and children will be hurt. Just load these bees up with the venom of a coral snake.