Stanford University developed a paper microscope worth less than a dollar

The main motive for creating a microscope was the fight against malaria - in developing countries for the diagnosis of malaria it is necessary to conduct about a billion microscopic studies of blood samples per year. A standard laboratory microscope is an expensive and fragile device. Stanford scientists managed to construct a microscope with magnification up to 2000x, the cost of all components of which for mass production is 97 cents. The body of the microscope is cut and folded from a sheet of thick paper. In addition, it uses a battery-tablet, LED, switch, a piece of conductive copper tape and sapphire or glass ball lens.

The paper microscope fits easily into a pocket, weighs less than ten grams, can be used for bright-field, dark-field, polarization and luminous microscopy, and even work as a projector. One battery lasts for 50 hours. A microscope can easily handle rather rough handling, it can even be stepped on, it can be dropped on the floor - it can withstand everything that a piece of cardboard can withstand. The image quality of the microscope is quite enough to determine the different types of infections in the field.


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The simplicity of the design and low cost allows us to talk about other promising applications for scientific and medical purposes, as well as in schools. A microscope can be assembled in 10 to 20 minutes, and its price can be even lower if, instead of the most expensive component - a sapphire lens, use much cheaper optics with a smaller magnification. In one lesson, each student will be able to independently assemble a microscope and conduct a series of experiments.

An article with a detailed description of the design and characteristics of the microscope is published in the public domain on arXiv.org.