Performance limits on three-dimensional particle localization in photon-limited microscopy

Opt Lett. 2010 Oct 1;35(19):3306-8. doi: 10.1364/OL.35.003306.

Abstract

We present the performance limits on three-dimensional (3D) localization accuracy of currently used methods of wide-field superlocalization microscopy. The three methods investigated are double-helix microscopy, astigmatic imaging, and biplane detection. In the shot-noise limit, Cramer-Rao lower bound calculations show that, among these techniques, the double-helix microscope exhibits the best axial and 3D localization accuracy over short as well as long depth-of-field systems. The fundamental advantage of engineered point-spread function systems, like the double-helix, stems from the additional degrees of freedom available to control diffraction in three dimensions over variable regions of interest.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Imaging, Three-Dimensional / methods*
  • Microscopy / methods*
  • Photons*