Answer
Both confocal microscopy and TPM requires specimens to be stained with fluorescent dye and illuminated with light. However, confocal microscopy uses short-wave light while TPM uses long-wave light. This means that while confocal microscopy only uses one photon to cause the fluorochrome to produce light, TPM needs to use two photons to generate the same effect. The longer wave permits TPM to explore a specimen as deep as 1,000 micrometers, in contrast to the 100 micrometers that short-wave confocal microscopy can reach. Furthermore, while confocal microscopy has to do consecutive scans on each area of a specimen to generate a 3D image, a specimen can be examined in real time through TPM.
Work Step by Step
Both confocal microscopy and TPM requires specimens to be stained with fluorescent dye and illuminated with light. However, confocal microscopy uses short-wave light while TPM uses long-wave light. This means that while confocal microscopy only uses one photon to cause the fluorochrome to produce light, TPM needs to use two photons to generate the same effect. The longer wave permits TPM to explore a specimen as deep as 1,000 micrometers, in contrast to the 100 micrometers that short-wave confocal microscopy can reach. Furthermore, while confocal microscopy has to do consecutive scans on each area of a specimen to generate a 3D image, a specimen can be examined in real time through TPM.
