Re: What Microscope power can see amoebas?

Thanks for the question, Jay

To understand microscopes better, you may want to vist How Microscopes Work or Anatomy of the Microscope.

You'll want to get a light microscope rather than a stereo microscope. Stereo microcopes are used to visualize objects such as rocks or insects at low magnification levels. Light microscopes pass light through glass slides to visualize objects such as cells at higher magnifications. Light microscopes can have one eyepiece (monocular) or two eyepieces (binocular).

In order to view amoeba or paramecium, you'll probably want a magnification of at least 100X. After reading the above links, you'll understand that total magnification is the combination of the eyepiece (almost always 10X) and the objective lens (usually 4X - 100X). Thus, an objective lens of 10X will give you at least some view of an amoeba (10X eyepice times 10X objective = 100X).

I hope this makes your final buying decision easier and more informed.