What are Some Ultramicroscopic Objects?
Ultramicroscopic objects, sometimes called sub-microscopic or nanoscopic, are objects too small to be usefully observed with a conventional microscope. This typically refers to objects smaller than about a micron in size, but may refer to bacteria as large as a few microns across. A micron, or micrometer, is a millionth of a meter, followed by the nanometer, which is a billionth of a meter. The most common means of observing ultramicroscopic objects is the electron microscope, invented in 1931. A couple others include the ultramicroscope, which observes objects smaller than the wavelength of light by observing their diffraction rings against a black body, and the scanning tunneling microscope, which uses quantum effects to image individual atoms. Some ultramicroscopic lengths and objects include: • Hydrogen atom – 0.05 nm. • Sulfur atom – 0.1 nm. • Diameter of carbon nanotube – 1 nm. • Diameter of DNA helix – 2 nm. • 10 base pairs in a typical DNA strand – 3.4 nm. • Thickness of typica
Ultramicroscopic objects, sometimes called sub-microscopic or nanoscopic, are objects too small to be usefully observed with a conventional microscope. This typically refers to objects smaller than about a micron in size, but may refer to bacteria as large as a few microns across. A micron, or micrometer, is a millionth of a meter, followed by the nanometer, which is a billionth of a meter. The most common means of observing ultramicroscopic objects is the electron microscope, invented in 1931. A couple others include the ultramicroscope, which observes objects smaller than the wavelength of light by observing their diffraction rings against a black body, and the scanning tunneling microscope, which uses quantum effects to image individual atoms. Some ultramicroscopic lengths and objects include: Hydrogen atom – 0.05 nm. Sulfur atom – 0.1 nm. Diameter of carbon nanotube – 1 nm. Diameter of DNA helix – 2 nm. 10 base pairs in a typical DNA strand – 3.4 nm. Thickness of typical cell membr
