How are electron microscopes (TEM) fundamentally different from light microscopes and what are the advantages and disadvantages of each?

Microscopes, in general, work by concentrating radiation of a given wavelength be it light or electrons (let's think of it as a wave just like light) onto a specimen (condensor/electromagnets) after which the radiation that is transmitted through the specimen is focussed onto a detector (objective lens) to form an image. Light microscopes use radiation within the visible spectrum (400-700nm) whereas electron micrscopes use beams of much shorter wavelength (1-2nm) allowing for a higher resolution as this is inversely dependent on wavelength of radiation used (Abbe's Law). This allows scientists to examine much smaller structures at the sub-cellular level (eg. ribosomes, viruses etc) which generally cannot be achieved using simple light microscopy (resolution of 0.2um - bacterial cell around 1um diameter). However, samples used for transmission electron microscopy (TEM) must be more resilient than light microscopy samples as very thin sections are needed for TEM and electron microscopy is generally more costly in terms of equipment and staining protocols. Extension: Recent advances in light microscopy provide a more affordable alternative (eg. confocal) to TEM with an improved resolution to light microscopy. 

Answered by YuGeng Z. Biology tutor

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