Optimal Point Spread Function Design for 3D Imaging
Abstract
To extract from an image of a single nanoscale object maximum physical information about its position, we propose and demonstrate a framework for pupil-plane modulation for 3D imaging applications requiring precise localization, including single-particle tracking and superresolution microscopy. The method is based on maximizing the information content of the system, by formulating and solving the appropriate optimization problem—finding the pupil-plane phase pattern that would yield a point spread function (PSF) with optimal Fisher information properties. We use our method to generate and experimentally demonstrate two example PSFs: one optimized for 3D localization precision over a 3 μm depth of field, and another with an unprecedented 5 μm depth of field, both designed to perform under physically common conditions of high background signals.
- Publication:
-
Physical Review Letters
- Pub Date:
- September 2014
- DOI:
- 10.1103/PhysRevLett.113.133902
- Bibcode:
- 2014PhRvL.113m3902S
- Keywords:
-
- 42.30.Lr;
- 42.30.Kq;
- 87.64.M-;
- 89.70.-a;
- Modulation and optical transfer functions;
- Fourier optics;
- Optical microscopy;
- Information and communication theory