Abstract: The present invention relates to an apparatus for the optical analysis of a sample, also referred to as microscope, which is configured for an optical analysis process having high resolution for the detection of fluorescent molecules. The apparatus and the process applied when using the apparatus are configured for excitation light generated by an excitation light source to be directed onto a sample and the light emitted by the probe is detected. The apparatus and the process are characterized in that the excitation light is synchronized with the detection. The apparatus is characterized in that it has a polarization device which is configured to modulate the polarization of the excitation light with a modulation signal, wherein the modulation signal has or consists of at least one frequency, in particular a pre-determined frequency or several pre-determined superimposed frequencies, or the modulation signal consists of a sequence of signals that has no repetition.

Abstract: The present invention relates to an apparatus for the optical analysis of a sample, also referred to as microscope, which is configured for an optical analysis process having high resolution for the detection of fluorescent molecules. The apparatus and the process applied when using the apparatus are configured for excitation light generated by an excitation light source to be directed onto a sample and the light emitted by the probe is detected. The apparatus and the process are characterized in that the excitation light is synchronized with the detection. The apparatus is characterized in that it has a polarization device which is configured to modulate the polarization of the excitation light with a modulation signal, wherein the modulation signal has or consists of at least one frequency, in particular a pre-determined frequency or several pre-determined superimposed frequencies, or the modulation signal consists of a sequence of signals that has no repetition.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a device for analyzing particles in the nanometer or micrometer range by optical measurement of light irradiated onto the sample containing particles. Accordingly, the device of the present invention can also be referred to as a microscope. The microscope device comprises an arrangement for detection of changes of the optical properties of the sample volume, e.g. changes in absorption and/or in refractive index in space and/or in time, using an interferometer arrangement of a collimated light beam or of split beams (3, 4) generated by a beam splitter (2). The wave front of the light focused into the sample is influenced by inhomogeneities of the sample, and the resultant wave front fluctuations are subsequently measured in a wave front analyser (8), which preferably is a deep nulling interferometer.