Techniques for Constructing Ultra Low Cost Deep Ultraviolet Transmission Microscopes

This article presents the design, construction, and results obtained by our new compact, small and inexpensive deep UV microscope. Several methods are described for recording microscopic images of various types in the deep ultraviolet spectral regime (200 nm - 300 nm). The techniques employed utilize CCD cameras, de-bayered webcam sensors, photographic paper and cyanotype coated paper as detectors. In addition, we describe the techniques employed and results obtained by utilizing a cellphone camera to record deep ultraviolet microscopic images. The instrumentation techniques, presented in this paper are expected to be most useful in areas where compact, handheld systems, are needed for in field applications.