Magnification Vs. Resolution
These terms are very common in interpretation of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), field emission SEM (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolutions TEM (HRTEM), scanning TEM (STEM), optical microscopy (OM) images, respectively.
We often hear words such as *Ultra-high-resolution images* and *Resolving power*. Let's differentiate the Magnification and Resolution in detail.
*Magnification:*
It is the ability of the equipment or tool to make small objects seem larger in size. It is simply zooming in the objects. There is always a limit to magnifying the image. After that, the image starts blurring and difficult to recognize the shape or structure.
*Resolution:*
It is the capability of a tool or instrument to resolve two closely space points or spots or lines as separate.
When magnifying the image, it is getting blurred, so we can say that it has poor resolution
When magnifying the image, it is getting visible, so we can say that it has good Resolutions.
The magnification and resolution are directly related. Let’s see if the SEM can maximum goes for 200Kx magnification. But if we want the magnification on the SEM up to 300Kx, you can't see (resolve) anything.
