Abstract: A light sheet microscope includes a light source configured to output light, a plurality of optical fibers configured to guide the light that is from the light source, a plurality of illumination optical systems configured to respectively emit beams of the light guided from the plurality of optical fibers toward a sample as light sheets in a plurality of different directions on a same plane, and a light switching device that is provided between the light source and the plurality of optical fibers and that is configured to switch an optical fiber that the light output from the light source enters, from among the plurality of optical fibers.

Abstract: Provided is a microscope system including a motor-driven stage on which is mounted a culture vessel containing one or more cell clusters, each including cells having a target molecule labeled with a fluorescent or luminescent chemical; a low-magnification-image acquiring unit that acquires low-magnification images of the cell clusters in the culture vessel mounted on the stage; a detecting unit that detects the position of each cell cluster in the culture vessel by analyzing the acquired low-magnification images; and a high-magnification-image acquiring unit that, after the detected position is aligned with the optical axis of an objective lens, acquires slice images of fluorescence or luminescence emitted from the cells forming the cell cluster at a higher magnification than the low-magnification-image acquiring unit at intervals along the optical axis while the stage and/or the lens is moved to change stepwise the distance between the lens and the cell cluster.

Abstract: Provided is a sample manufacturing method that includes: a step of forming a hanging drop consisting of a liquid drop of a medium solution in a hanging state while causing at least one cell aggregate to be encapsulated in the liquid drop of the medium solution, the medium solution becoming substantially transparent upon gelling or solidifying; and a step of causing the hanging drop to gel or solidify by causing a promoting factor that promotes gelling or solidification of the medium solution to act on the hanging drop.

Abstract: A microscope includes: a chamber that holds a chamber solution in which a cuvette, which contains a sample together with a cuvette solution, is immersed; an immersion objective lens that is disposed outside the chamber and that collects light coming from the sample; a detection optical system that detects the light collected by the immersion objective lens; and a motorized XYZ stage that supports the cuvette inside the chamber to be movable in a direction parallel to an optical axis of the immersion objective lens. The cuvette and the chamber each have a transparent portion that allows transmission of the light from the sample, and the immersion objective lens is disposed facing the transparent portion of the cuvette, with the transparent portion of the chamber interposed therebetween, and is disposed so that an immersion solution is interposed between said immersion objective lens and the transparent portion of the chamber.

Abstract: A microscope apparatus 10 includes a detection optical system 12 that captures light from a sample S and an illumination optical system 11 that radiates an illumination light onto the sample S. The illumination optical system 11 includes a cylindrical lens 5 that has a power in a first-axis direction and does not have a power in a second-axis direction that is perpendicular to the first-axis direction, a cylindrical lens 6 that has a power in the second-axis direction and does not have a power in the first-axis direction, and a scanner 4 that scans the illumination light in a width direction. The illumination optical system 11 is configured such that the first-axis direction is the width direction described above, and the cylindrical lenses 5 and 6 are arranged posterior to the scanner 4.

Abstract: An immersion liquid holder 2 is an immersion liquid holder that is used for an observation device 10 for observing sample S by using an immersion method, and includes a supporting member 2b configured to support an absorption member 3 that has absorbed an immersion liquid and a connection unit 2c configured to relatively fix the absorption member 3 that has absorbed the immersion liquid with respect to an optical system, which is an optical system included in the observation device 10, and to fix the absorption member 3 on an optical path of the optical system 1, by fixing the supporting member 2b to the observation device 10.

Abstract: A microscope device 100 includes: a sample container holder 7 that is capable of housing a plurality of sample containers 9 and that is supported so as to be attachable, each of the sample containers 9 housing a sample S and a first immersion medium and including a transparent section that transmits light; an illumination optical system 1 that emits illumination light to the sample S via the transparent section; a detection optical system 2 that detects light from the sample S via the transparent section; and a movement mechanism 16 that relatively moves the sample container holder 7, the detection optical system 2, and the illumination optical system 1 in a gravity direction. The sample container holder 7 houses the plurality of sample containers S in the gravity direction.

Abstract: A microscope includes: a first illumination optical system that illuminates a sample from a first direction that is substantially orthogonal to an optical axis of a first objective, and that forms a first illumination region within the sample; a first imaging optical system that images the sample in accordance with light that has been generated from the first illumination region; a second illumination optical system that illuminates the sample from a second direction that is substantially orthogonal to the optical axis of the first objective; and a second imaging optical system that images the sample in accordance with light emitted from the second illumination optical system.

Abstract: This microplate includes: container sections having wells that open at a first plane and that accommodate samples; and a connection section connecting a plurality of rows of the container sections to be arrayed in a manner where the rows are spaced from each other in a direction along the first plane, wherein each of the container sections includes: at least one side wall section that is optically transparent at at least a portion thereof; and a bottom surface section that is disposed on a second plane on a side opposite from the first plane and that is optically transparent at at least a portion thereof, a recessed section is provided between neighboring rows of the container sections, and the recessed section allows an optical member to be inserted thereinto via the second plane, wherein the optical member introduces sheet-shaped illumination light to the well via the side wall section.

Abstract: Provided is a microscope including: a chamber storing a solution in which a cuvette accommodating a solution together with a sample is immersed and that has an index of refraction identical to that of the solution; an immersion objective lens being placed outside the chamber and collecting light from the sample; a camera acquiring an image of the light collected by the lens; a targeting section moving the lens in a direction along a detection light axis thereof; and a movable stage supporting the cuvette in the chamber so as to be movable in at least a direction along the detection light axis. Each of the cuvette and the chamber has a transparent section that can transmit light coming from the sample. The lens is placed so as to face the transparent section of the cuvette with the transparent section of the chamber interposed therebetween.

Abstract: A light sheet microscope includes an objective, an illumination optical system, a correction device, an image pickup device, a first adjustor, a second adjustor and a controller. The controller performs a first focus process and a spherical aberration correction process. The first focus process is a process in which the first adjustor is controlled on the basis of light that is from the light sheet plane and that is detected via the objective so that the light sheet plane and a focal plane become closer when a relative position between the light sheet plane and a sample has been changed. The spherical aberration correction process is a process in which the correction device is controlled so that an evaluation value of the image obtained by the image pickup device becomes greater when the first adjustor has changed the relative position between the light sheet plane and the objective.

Abstract: A light sheet microscope includes an objective, an illumination optical system, a first adjustor, a second adjustor and a controller. The illumination optical system irradiates sample with a light sheet from a direction that is different from an optical axis direction of the objective. The first adjustor adjusts a relative position between a light sheet plane on which the light sheet is formed and the objective in an optical axis direction of the objective. The second adjustor adjusts a relative position between the light sheet plane and the sample in an optical axis direction of the objective. The controller controls the first adjustor on the basis of light that is from the light sheet plane and that is detected via the objective when a relative position between the light sheet plane and the sample is changed by the second adjustor.

Abstract: A cell evaluation method includes: a labeling step of labeling at least some of cells constituting a cell clump with a chemical substance; an image-capturing step of acquiring a plurality of slice images of the labeled cells, for at least part of the cell clump; an evaluating step of evaluating the characteristics of the cells on the basis of the plurality of slice images; a 3D-image creating step of creating a 3D image of at least part of the cell clump by subjecting the plurality of slice images to image processing; a center-of-gravity determining step of determining, from the 3D image, a center-of-gravity position of the cell clump; and an organizing step of organizing evaluation results obtained in the evaluating step, with respect to the distance from the center-of-gravity position.

Abstract: In order to simply and accurately acquire a three-dimensional image of a sample to observe the sample, a light-sheet microscope according to the present invention includes: a duct in which the sample can flow; a syringe pump for moving the sample in the duct; a cylindrical lens for causing planar illumination light along a plane intersecting the direction in which the sample is moved by the syringe pump to enter the duct; an objective lens that is disposed so as to face the radiation plane of the illumination light caused by the cylindrical lens to enter the duct and that collects fluorescence emitted from the sample moved by the syringe pump so as to pass through the radiation plane of the illumination light; and a camera for acquiring an image of the fluorescence from the sample collected by the objective lens.

Abstract: The present invention provides a light-field microscope including: an illumination optical system that radiates excitation light onto a sample; and a detection optical system including an objective lens that collects fluorescence generated in the sample as a result of the sample being irradiated with the excitation light by the illumination optical system, an image-acquisition element that acquires an image of the fluorescence collected by the objective lens, and a microlens array disposed between the image-acquisition element and the objective lens. The illumination optical system radiates a beam of the excitation light having a predetermined width in the optical-axis direction of the objective lens so as to include the focal plane of the objective lens onto the sample in a direction substantially perpendicular to the optical axis.

Abstract: Ocean floating installations (1) are disposed on the ocean. The ocean floating installations (1) float on the ocean with the lower part of the ocean floating installations (1) being fixed to the seabed by mooring ropes (11). Each of the ocean floating installations (1) is connected at a connection part (5a) to a cable (3), which is a first cable. Each of the cables (3) is connected at a connection part (5b) to a cable (7), which is a second cable. In other words, the ocean floating installations (1) are connected to each other by the cables (3) and the cable (7). A connection is established with the cables (7) at the connection parts (5b) located on the seabed. In other words, the cables (7) are installed on the seabed.

Abstract: A sheet illumination microscope includes an observation optical system and an illumination optical system configured to illuminate a sample from a direction perpendicular to an observation optical axis of the observation optical system. The illumination optical system includes a first optical system configured to emit a flux that has a prescribed sectional shape and that does not have a light intensity distribution within a prescribed range from the center of gravity position of the sectional shape, and also includes a second optical system. The second optical system includes a deflector configured to deflect, toward the observation optical axis, light entering from a direction parallel to the observation optical axis. The second optical system is configured to form, from the flux, a plurality of light sheets that are parallel to a plane perpendicular to the observation optical axis and that have different traveling directions.

Abstract: Provided is a microscope system including a motor-driven stage on which is mounted a culture vessel containing one or more cell clusters, each including cells having a target molecule labeled with a fluorescent or luminescent chemical; a low-magnification-image acquiring unit that acquires low-magnification images of the cell clusters in the culture vessel mounted on the stage; a detecting unit that detects the position of each cell cluster in the culture vessel by analyzing the acquired low-magnification images; and a high-magnification-image acquiring unit that, after the detected position is aligned with the optical axis of an objective lens, acquires slice images of fluorescence or luminescence emitted from the cells forming the cell cluster at a higher magnification than the low-magnification-image acquiring unit at intervals along the optical axis while the stage and/or the lens is moved to change stepwise the distance between the lens and the cell cluster.

Abstract: A cell evaluation method includes: a labeling step of labeling at least some of cells constituting a cell clump with a chemical substance; an image-capturing step of acquiring a plurality of slice images of the labeled cells, for at least part of the cell clump; an evaluating step of evaluating the characteristics of the cells on the basis of the plurality of slice images; a 3D-image creating step of creating a 3D image of at least part of the cell clump by subjecting the plurality of slice images to image processing; a center-of-gravity determining step of determining, from the 3D image, a center-of-gravity position of the cell clump; and an organizing step of organizing evaluation results obtained in the evaluating step, with respect to the distance from the center-of-gravity position.

Abstract: Ocean floating installations (1) are disposed on the ocean. The ocean floating installations (1) float on the ocean with the lower part of the ocean floating installations (1) being fixed to the seabed by mooring ropes (11). Each of the ocean floating installations (1) is connected at a connection part (5a) to a cable (3), which is a first cable. Each of the cables (3) is connected at a connection part (5b) to a cable (7), which is a second cable. In other words, the ocean floating installations (1) are connected to each other by the cables (3) and the cable (7). A connection is established with the cables (7) at the connection parts (5b) located on the seabed. In other words, the cables (7) are installed on the seabed.