Magnification of a microscope

Magnification on a microscope refers to the amount or degree of visual enlargement of an observed object. Magnification is measured by multiples, such as 2x, 4x and 10x, indicating that the object is enlarged to twice as big, four times as big or 10 times as big, respectively.

For a standard light-based microscope, the maximum magnification extends up to 1,500x; beyond this, objects under view become excessively fuzzy because the wavelengths of light limit the clarity of images. Electrons, on the other hand, have much shorter wavelengths. According to Auburn University, electron microscopes produce useful images with magnifications up to about 200,000x.