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You can buy dedicated solar scopes. I use a Coronado Solar Max 60 which is very nice. This is a dedicated Ha scope so the images are composed soley of light emitted by ionised hydrogen, this enable it to show flares and prominences as well as the surface granulation on the sun. It also is great for sunspots. I have used it for imaging using a DMK Mono camera. However it cannot be used for anything but solar.
An ordinary scope can be used with appropriate accessories for solar work. A full aperture solar filter will enable white light observing or imaging to be done. You can observe sunspots with this sort of setup. It is possible to get filters etc to modify a refractor for Ha use also but that is a more expensive proposition, it does have the advantage that you can still use the refractor for ordinary night time use.
Be aware that solar work is potentially dangerous, using a scope on the sun without proper filtering can (and by "can" I mean "will"!) destroy your eyesight. Also you can sometimes come across things called eyepiece solar filters. If you ever come across one of these DO NOT USE IT! and preferably destroy it with a sledgehammer.
If you are genuinely interested in solar observing, attending a multiday star party is often a good way to start as if the sun shine the solar scopes usually come out, even at little ol' Snake Valley we often have half a dozen or more scope of various types and sizes.
Malcolm
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