Final answer:
The maximum useful magnification for a microscope with an objective lens having a numerical aperture of 0.9 is 1350x. A claimed magnification of 250,000x surpasses the physical limitations of standard optical microscopes and is not viable.
Step-by-step explanation:
Final answer:
The maximum useful magnification for a microscope with an objective lens having a numerical aperture of 0.9 is 1350x. A claimed magnification of 250,000x surpasses the physical limitations of standard optical microscopes and is not viable.
Step-by-step explanation:
The maximum useful magnification for an optical microscope is typically considered to be 1500 times the numerical aperture (NA) of the objective lens. Given an objective lens with a numerical aperture of 0.9, the maximum useful magnification can be calculated as 1500 × 0.9, which equals 1350x.
Therefore, it's physically impossible for a microscope with these lens specifications to achieve a magnification of 250,000x as claimed by the scenario presented. The theoretical resolution limit for a light microscope, which relates to the smallest object that the microscope can resolve, is approximately 0.2 µm.
Factors that contribute to the magnification include the quality of the lenses and their ability to reduce aberrations through multiple elements.