Abstract: An apparatus for analyzing unknown microstructures in samples with known microstructure configurations, both biological and non-biological, by optically correlating the unknown with the known. The apparatus employs a microscope to produce images of unknown microstructures in a sample, a laser for illuminating the sample, a Vander Lugt correlator, including a preselected matched filter for particular known microstructures of interest, for optically correlating the image of the unknown microstructures with preexisting images of known microstructures, a CCD array to detect correlation indicia, and a microcomputer to control positioning of the sample for imaging, orienting the matched filter, and scanning by the CCD array of the indicia resulting from the correlation for reading and counting the same.