Electronic confocal microscope with double matrix detection system - receiving light passing through, as well as light reflected from, specimen

摘要

The sample (13) under examination is scanned by light from a plasma matrix light source (11) focussed by a lens (12). Light passing the sample is focussed by a collimating lens (14) onto a matrix (15) of detector cells. Reflected light from the sample is deflected to a second detector matrix (15') by a half-silvered mirror (16) which acts as a beam splitter. An electronic unit (17) controls and synchronises the operation of the light source matrix (11) and the two detector matrices (15,15') in such a way that point sources and the corresp. detector points are scanned serially without wasted operational stages.