confocal
adjective
con·fo·cal (ˌ)kän-ˈfō-kəl 
: having the same foci
confocal ellipses
confocal lenses
confocally
(ˌ)kän-ˈfō-kə-lē
adverb 
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Shining light on this sample and scrutinizing it under a special confocal microscope built by John Ball, a staff scientist in Li’s lab and the lead author of the study, revealed a striking result. 
Quanta Magazine, 5 Apr. 2022 The researchers scanned the surfaces of the paintings using a tool known as a chromatic confocal optical profilometer, creating precise 3-D surface height data showing how the paint lay on the canvases, and digitally broke them into grids. Livia Gershon, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 Jan. 2022 McMaster conceived the idea of using a chromatic confocal profilometer, a widely available scanning device, to analyze the CIA students’ paintings. cleveland, 20 Dec. 2021 In confocal microscopy the focal plane is imaged with a single, intense point of light, centered between two cones of light that flood the rest of the sample. Jen Christiansen, Scientific American, 21 May 2013 First, the team used confocal microscopy to take high-resolution images of selected regions on the fragments. Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 30 Dec. 2019 Researchers at Pablo de Olavide University in Spain created this time lapse of a developing fruit fly larva under a confocal microscope, each cell illuminated by a fluorescent protein. Scientific American, 6 Sep. 2019 The photo was taken by Harvard University’s Dr. Tessa Montague with a confocal microscope, an instrument that allows researchers to use fluorescent molecules to visualize cellular structures. Daniela Hernandez, WSJ, 12 Oct. 2018 Compare these pyramidal cells, photographed through a confocal microscope, to Cajal’s drawing of a single one. Sharon Begley, STAT, 3 May 2018 See More
Quanta Magazine, 5 Apr. 2022 The researchers scanned the surfaces of the paintings using a tool known as a chromatic confocal optical profilometer, creating precise 3-D surface height data showing how the paint lay on the canvases, and digitally broke them into grids. Livia Gershon, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 Jan. 2022 McMaster conceived the idea of using a chromatic confocal profilometer, a widely available scanning device, to analyze the CIA students’ paintings. cleveland, 20 Dec. 2021 In confocal microscopy the focal plane is imaged with a single, intense point of light, centered between two cones of light that flood the rest of the sample. Jen Christiansen, Scientific American, 21 May 2013 First, the team used confocal microscopy to take high-resolution images of selected regions on the fragments. Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 30 Dec. 2019 Researchers at Pablo de Olavide University in Spain created this time lapse of a developing fruit fly larva under a confocal microscope, each cell illuminated by a fluorescent protein. Scientific American, 6 Sep. 2019 The photo was taken by Harvard University’s Dr. Tessa Montague with a confocal microscope, an instrument that allows researchers to use fluorescent molecules to visualize cellular structures. Daniela Hernandez, WSJ, 12 Oct. 2018 Compare these pyramidal cells, photographed through a confocal microscope, to Cajal’s drawing of a single one. Sharon Begley, STAT, 3 May 2018 See More Word History
First Known Use
1867, in the meaning defined above
Medical Definition
confocal
adjective
con·fo·cal (ˈ)kän-ˈfō-kəl
: having the same foci
confocal lenses