Fluorescent microscopes are necessary tools by pathologists to make a diagnosis on patients, but they’re generally quite heavy, bulky, and cost a pretty penny at around $2,000. Fortunately, some smart folks out there have been working to develop a cheap, portable, battery-powered fluorescent microscope, and they’ve managed to come up with a design that is estimated to allow manufacturers to churn them out for under $300. One of the main costs for the microscope has been the light source, which is usually a laser, but thanks to bright white LEDs being increasingly common, researchers have managed to use a standard, battery-powered LED flashlight to achieve a similar result, and make the setup easy to be replaced, thanks to readily available parts. Such a setup would be fairly useful in developing nations as it’s might easier on the wallet, and easy to take with you.
Filed in ..