| US 7,576,910 B2 | ||
| Microscope and sample observation method | ||
| Hirotoshi Terada, Hamamatsu (Japan); Ikuo Arata, Hamamatsu (Japan); Masaharu Tokiwa, Hamamatsu (Japan); Hiroshi Tanabe, Hamamatsu (Japan); Shigeru Sakamoto, Hamamatsu (Japan); and Yoshio Isobe, Hamamatsu (Japan) | ||
| Assigned to Hamamatsu Photonics K.K., Hamamatsu-shi, Shizuoka (Japan) | ||
| Filed on Nov. 06, 2007, as Appl. No. 11/979,592. | ||
| Application 11/979592 is a continuation of application No. 11/333550, filed on Jan. 18, 2006, granted, now 7,312,921. | ||
| Application 11/333550 is a continuation in part of application No. 10/880100, filed on Jun. 30, 2004, granted, now 7,110,172. | ||
| Claims priority of application No. P2004-053343 (JP), filed on Feb. 27, 2004; and application No. P2005-012103 (JP), filed on Jan. 19, 2005. | ||
| Prior Publication US 2008/0074739 A1, Mar. 27, 2008 | ||
| Int. Cl. G02B 21/00 (2006.01) | ||
| U.S. Cl. 359—383 [359/368] | 8 Claims |
| 1. A microscope for observing a sample at a predetermined observation plane, comprising:
an optical system comprising an objective lens and adapted to guide an image of the sample;
objective lens driving means for driving the objective lens to achieve aberration correction for the sample;
a solid immersion lens arranged at a position including an optical axis from the sample to the optical system; and
controlling means for controlling the objective lens driving means,
wherein the controlling means has a solid immersion lens mode, as a control mode, in which the aberration correction is carried
out by controlling the driving of the objective lens via the objective lens driving means under a correction condition set
based on a refractive index n0 of the sample and a thickness t0 of the sample up to the observation plane, and a refractive index n1, a thickness d1, a radius of curvature R1 of the solid immersion lens, and further based on at least a geometric aberration I2 appearing at the interface between the solid immersion lens and the sample given by
I2=n1(n02−n12)t0NA2/(2n03),
where NA is a numerical aperture of the objective lens,
wherein the objective lens comprises a first lens unit and a second lens unit arranged along the optical axis, and
wherein the objective lens driving means comprises focusing means for changing a distance between the sample and the objective
lens to carry out the focusing, and aberration correcting means for changing a spacing between the first lens unit and the
second lens unit in the objective lens to carry out the aberration correction.
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