mikroskopisch

Mikroskopisch is a German adjective and adverb meaning "microscopic." It describes objects or phenomena that are too small to be seen with the naked eye or that require magnification to be studied. The term is widely used in science, medicine, and everyday language to indicate small scale or fine detail.

In practice, mikroskopisch refers to anything below the perceptual resolution of unaided vision, roughly below 0.1 millimeter (100 micrometers) or smaller, though the exact boundary depends on lighting, contrast, and apparatus. Microscopic scope includes cells, bacteria, fine mineral grains, and subcellular structures. Objects on the nanometer scale are often labeled nanoscopic, but the term mikroskopisch can be used loosely for very small features when studied by appropriate techniques.

Common usages include mikroskopische Untersuchung (microscopic examination) and mikroskopische Strukturen (microscopic structures). The adjective can describe size (mikroskopisch klein) or processes observed under a microscope. Techniques used to reveal mikroskopische details include light microscopy, electron microscopy, and scanning probe microscopy.

Etymology: mikroskopisch comes from Greek mikros "small" and skopos "to look," adopted into German in the modern scientific vocabulary. The English equivalent is microscopic.