Science Lab

Learn. Share. Contribute. The knowledge portal of Leica Microsystems. Find scientific research and teaching material on the subject of microscopy. The portal supports beginners, experienced practitioners and scientists alike in their everyday work and experiments. Explore interactive tutorials and application notes, discover the basics of microscopy as well as high-end technologies. Become part of the Science Lab community and share your expertise.

AI-based inspection detects, classifies, and measures defects directly in microscope images of components.

AI Image Analysis for Reliable Defect Detection

AI-based visual inspection with microscopy helps make quality control in industrial environments efficient by reducing manual inspection effort concerning defect detection, classification, and…

An Overview of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning

AI is rapidly changing industrial inspection, quality control, and manufacturing workflows. But not all AI technologies work the same way. From machine learning and deep learning to the newer concept…

Why the Future of Microscopic Inspection Is AI-Assisted, Not Fully Automated

The next wave of QC productivity gains will not come from building more automated inspection lines. Instead, it will come from augmenting millions of inspection decisions that are made manually every…

Quality assurance during production in a manufacturing plant.

Quality Assurance Improvement Across Industries

Precision is paramount. Imagine a pacemaker that fails mid-operation or a semiconductor flaw that causes a critical system crash. In industries, such as medical devices, electronics, and…

Image of roundworm C. elegans acquired with a M205 FA fluorescence automated stereo microscope in combination with Rottermann contrast. Areas labelled with mCherry are seen as reddish purple.

A Guide to C. elegans Research – Working with Nematodes

Efficient microscopy techniques for C. elegans research are outlined in this guide. As a widely used model organism with about 70% gene homology to humans, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans (also…

A fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) observed with an Ivesta 3 stereo microscope during fly pushing (sorting of the flies). The scale bar length is 1 mm. Image courtesy of M. Benton, EMBL, Heidelberg, Germany.

A Guide to Using Microscopy for Drosophila (Fruit Fly) Research

The fruit fly, typically Drosophila melanogaster, has been used as a model organism for over a century. One reason is that many disease-related genes are shared between Drosophila and humans. It is…

Example of a Leica stereo microscope, Ivesta 3, with integrated digital camera which can be used as a dissecting microscope.

Selecting the Right Dissecting Microscope

Learn how you can enhance dissection for life-science research and education with a microscope that ensures ergonomic comfort, high-quality optics, and easy access to the specimen.

Area of a printed circuit board (PCB) which was imaged with extended depth of field (EDOF) using digital microscopy.

Depth of Field in Microscope Images

For microscopy imaging, depth of field is an important parameter when needing sharp images of sample areas with structures having significant changes in depth. In practice, depth of field is…

Image of a Siemens star, where the diameter of the 1st black line circle is 10 mm and the 2nd is 20 mm, taken via an eyepiece of a M205 A stereo microscope. The rectangles represent the field of view (FOV) of a Leica digital camera when installed with various C-mounts (red 0.32x, blue 0.5x, green 0.63x).

Understanding Clearly the Magnification of Microscopy

To help users better understand the magnification of microscopy and how to determine the useful range of magnification values for digital microscopes, this article provides helpful guidelines.