Instruments

Electron Microscope

Citation Formats

General Reference

Science Atlas. "Electron Microscope." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://science.interactiveatlas.org/instruments/electron-microscope.

APA Style

Science Atlas. (n.d.). Electron Microscope. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://science.interactiveatlas.org/instruments/electron-microscope

BibTeX

@misc{scienceatlas-electron-microscope,
  author = {Science Atlas},
  title = {Electron Microscope},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://science.interactiveatlas.org/instruments/electron-microscope},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

An electron microscope forms an image using a focused beam of electrons instead of light, and because electrons have a much shorter wavelength than visible light, it can resolve detail thousands of times finer than any light microscope, down to individual columns of atoms. Ernst Ruska and Max Knoll built the first working electron microscope in 1931 and demonstrated resolution beyond that of light microscopy by 1933; Ruska received the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physics for the invention, more than half a century after building it, once its impact on biology and materials science was fully clear.

Facts

Invented Yearthe subject's own account

1931 1

Measuresthe subject's own account

The internal structure of a specimen, imaged by transmitted electrons rather than light. 1

Operating Principlethe subject's own account

A beam of electrons, accelerated to high voltage and focused by electromagnetic lenses, passes through an ultrathin specimen; because accelerated electrons have a far shorter wavelength than visible light, the resulting image resolves detail well beyond the limit of light microscopy. 1

Operating Rangethe subject's own account

Accelerating voltage is typically about 100 to 300 kilovolts. 1

Partially Attested

Resolution

Capable of resolving detail down to a single column of atoms, though the source gives no specific nanometer figure for that limit. 1

the subject's own accountQualitative resolution claim confirmed; the cited source states no specific numeric nanometer or picometer figure.

Cross-Tradition Connections