This is a beautiful book about microscopy, which is a fundamental issue in optics that has deeply changed our understanding of nature and has huge applications in daily life.
The book is divided into three parts. The first part is dedicated to the development of microscopes, dealing with resolution, aberrations, and the contribution of Abbe, Helmholtz and other important scientists to image formation and microscopy. The second part deals with techniques for enhancing optical contrast, and the third part focuses on far-field superresolution microscopy.
The book is a must for anyone working in optics as well as for anyone interested in science in general. It is very clearly written, touches on many historical aspects of optics and has many photos supporting the text information. This book is another beautiful illustration of Newton’s famous words “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”
Review by Daniela Dragoman, University of Bucharest, Romania
The opinions expressed in the book review section are those of the reviewer and do not necessarily reflect those of OPN or OSA.