Stereo Microscopes

Stereomicroscopes are used extensively throughout the many fields of microscopy. Stereomicroscopes provide low magnifications when compared to compound microscopes (usually no more than 200x total magnification, but there are some exceptions), but as a result of their design they yield extra wide fields of view, large depth of field and ultra-long working distances. For years stereomicroscopes were known as and most widely used as dissection microscopes, but they are much more versatile than that today. Currently, stereo microscopes are used for everything from gem and jewelry inspection (often referred to as gem microscopes or jewelry microscopes), to bulk sample analysis, to dissection, to sample preparation, to QA/QC inspection (sometimes called inspection microscopes), and more. In addition, stereo microscopes can often be equipped with contrast-enhancing techniques, such as polarized light, darkfield, and fluorescence.