What's the smallest thing that can be seen?

[Chris71]

...with magnification that is. What's the smallest thing that we can actually capture optically rather than by inferred techniques like electron microscopes?

The question popped into my head after seeing a film of chromosones dividing. That's pretty small in everyday terms. Just how much smaller can you go?

[anonymous-user]

Not small enough I'm wanting to be here when we can see down to planck length to see if string theory is correct. Alas - I feel it's a long way away!!

[illmonkey]

A grain of rice

[Jonny671]

What about the atoms colliding in CERN? Thats quite small, I think you can see them on certain videos as white sparks..

[itsnotarace]

garyhun said:

I'm wanting to be here when we can see down to planck length to see if string theory is correct.

I doubt that would ever be possible, they will find other indirect ways to prove string theory is correct imho

[Frankeh]

Well electron microscope can magnify 1 million times.
So I'd say anything everso slightly bigger than an electron.

[otolith]

The limiting factor in an optical microscope is the wavelength of the light you observe the object with.

See:

http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/gen99/gen998...

[Jasandjules]

The brain of a chav?

[5potTurbo]

Jasandjules said:

The brain of a chav?

Do they possess one, even between them, all?!

[spurs-442]

Jasandjules said:

The brain of a chav?

Well at least that could be used to prove the "planck" theory

Edited by spurs-442 on Wednesday 2nd June 15:32

[silverMX]

My knob.

[craggers]

dust (in the air when looking at sun light)

[anonymous-user]

itsnotarace said:

garyhun said:

I'm wanting to be here when we can see down to planck length to see if string theory is correct.

I doubt that would ever be possible, they will find other indirect ways to prove string theory is correct imho

You are probably correct! Be cool though

[Rawwr]

An elephant.

[Frankeh]

The observer effect starts coming into play though. So what you're really looking at might have not been happening had you not looked at it.

[P9]

Jonny671 said:

What about the atoms colliding in CERN? Thats quite small, I think you can see them on certain videos as white sparks..

That's the reaction, not the atoms themselves.

[Ayahuasca]

The thickness of a slice of ham in a motorway service station sandwich?

[Chris71]

P9 said:

Jonny671 said:

What about the atoms colliding in CERN? Thats quite small, I think you can see them on certain videos as white sparks..

That's the reaction, not the atoms themselves.

That was my assumption.

I must admit I don't know exactly how they work, but wouldn't anything on an electron microscope be the same? You're seeing a representation of what the electrons bounce off/interactive with/whatever rather than an actual image.

[caz4213]

wavelength of (visible) light is between 400-700nm, so optically (if you could get a magnifier that big I'm not sure) the smallest object you could see would be around 400nm long. I think..

[Eddh]

Ayahuasca said:

The thickness of a slice of ham in a motorway service station sandwich?

Edited by Eddh on Wednesday 2nd June 16:13