Photo from The Changhuei Yang Research Group.

California Institute of Technology researchers have developed a high-resolution microscope that is small enough to sit on a computer chip. CIT says that it was designed for scientists to analyze blood samples for malaria or to check water supplies for pathogens while in the field. Called the optofluidic microscope, it can be produced for about $10.

"The whole thing is truly compact. It could be put in a cell phone. And it can use just sunlight for illumination, which makes it very appealing for third world applications," said Changhuei Yang, an assistant professor at Caltech and a developer of the device, in a statement. Yang noted that health care workers could carry the microscopes to test people for malaria, and military medics could take disposable versions onto the battlefield.

Using sunlight on the microscopic level usually has mixed results (as I've tested with a microscope eyepiece and the Flip Mino). Plus, what if specimens need to be analyzed at night? Perhaps an LED would suffice, as focusing with microscopes this tiny tend to be very hard to do.

[Via Computer World]