Light Microscope vs Electron Microscope: 7 Main Differences

Compound Light Microscope: Everything You Need to Know

It is not possible to see very small objects, such as viruses, using an ordinary light microscope. An electron microscope, however, can view such objects using an electron beam instead of a light beam. Electron microscopy has proved invaluable for investigations of viruses, cell membranes and subcellular structures, bacterial surfaces, visual receptors, chloroplasts, and the contractile properties of muscles. The "lenses" of an electron microscope consist of electric and magnetic fields that con