A historical study on microscopical visualization and belief in existence:

The observations of dislocations in crystals with the microscopes

Abstract

    The microscopes have been showing us the invisible entities since their invention. The magnified images with the optical microscope convinced us of their existence, such as blood capillary and the cell nuclei during cell divisions. And the electron microscope visualized viruses that people had doubted their existence. This paper explores the history of observations of dislocations in crystals with the microscopes from the 1940s to the 1960s to show how microscopists visualized the dislocations to verify the existence of dislocations. The visualizations of dislocations with the Transmission Electron microscope in 1956 had a critical role in the acceptance of the reality of dislocations. Also, this historical case would offer an opportunity to analyze the relationship between representations and existence.