Science Lab

Science Lab

Science Lab

The knowledge portal of Leica Microsystems offers scientific research and teaching material on the subjects of microscopy. The content is designed to support 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!

Controlling the TIRF Penetration Depth is Mandatory for Reproducible Results

The main feature of total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy is the employment of an evanescent wave for the excitation of fluorophores instead of using direct light. A property of the…

Basic Principles of Luminescence

There are a lot of light-emitting processes occurring in nature. Luminescence is an umbrella term for those kinds of events where light emission is not the result of high temperatures. This article…
TIRF Image of Tubulin, YFP, penetration depth: 120 mm

Applications of TIRF Microscopy in Life Science Research

The special feature of TIRF microscopy is the employment of an evanescent field for fluorophore excitation. Unlike standard widefield fluorescence illumination procedures with arc lamps, LEDs or…
TIRF image of brest carcinoma tumor cells expressing GFP tagged cell adhesion Molecule CD44 that is expressed on the cell membrane, imagined in TIRF.

Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence (TIRF) Microscopy

Total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) is a special technique in fluorescence microscopy developed by Daniel Axelrod at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor in the early 1980s. TIRF microscopy…
Jellyfish Aequorea Victoria

Fluorescent Proteins - From the Beginnings to the Nobel Prize

Fluorescent proteins are the fundament of recent fluorescence microscopy and its modern applications. Their discovery and consequent development was one of the most exciting innovations for life…

Fluorescence Recovery after Photobleaching (FRAP) and its Offspring

FRAP (Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching) can be used to study cellular protein dynamics: For visualization the protein of interest is fused to a fluorescent protein or a fluorescent dye. A…
Section taste buds rabbit, differential interference contrast microscope

Optical Contrast Methods

Optical contrast methods give the potential to easily examine living and colorless specimens. Different microscopic techniques aim to change phase shifts caused by the interaction of light with the…
Modulation contrast visualizes transparent, low-contrast specimens.

Integrated Modulation Contrast (IMC)

Hoffman modulation contrast has established itself as a standard for the observation of unstained, low-contrast biological specimens. The integration of the modulator in the beam path of themodern…
Transgenic Mouse Embryo, GFP

Fluorescence in Microscopy

Fluorescence microscopy is a special form of light microscopy. It uses the ability of fluorochromes to emit light after being excited with light of a certain wavelength. Proteins of interest can be…
Scroll to top