 | The visible and ultraviolet or infrared laser lines emerging from the laser modules are conducted to the scanning module by separate optical fibers (1). After passing adjustable collimators (2), the laser lines are combined (3) and reflected by the main dichroic beam splitter (4) on to the scanner mirrors (5). The mirrors deflect the beam across the specimen in X and Y; thanks to the highly corrected scanning lens (6) and the microscope optic, the beam forms a diffraction-limited focal spot. The light reflected, or the fluorescent radiation emitted, by the specimen now passes the main dichroic beam splitter (4), after which it can be spectrally separated by three secondary dichroic beam splitters (7, 8, 9). Each of the four confocal channels (I to IV) has its own pinhole diaphragm (10) whose diameter and position can be adjusted separately. Various emission filters (11) optimally adapted for all relevant spectral ranges ensure that the highly sensitive photo-multiplier tubes (12) detect photons of the desired wavelengths only. As an option, a small portion of the incident laser light, after beam combination (3), can be reflected on to a monitor diode (14) and attenuated with neutral filters (13) if necessary. | | |