Portable Microscope Uses Holograms Instead of Lenses
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 31, 2011 — A compact, lightweight, dual-mode microscope that uses holograms instead of lenses could prove to be a boon for global health initiatives.
The palm-size device, developed at UCLA, costs only $50 to $100 to make. It features a transmission mode that can be used to probe relatively large volumes of blood or water, and a reflection mode that can image denser, opaque samples. The spatial resolution for both modes is less than 2 μm — comparable to that achieved by bulkier microscopes...