Fluctuations As A Source Of Information In Fluorescence Microscopy

Main Category: MRI / PET / Ultrasound
Also Included In: Radiology / Nuclear Medicine;  Biology / Biochemistry
Article Date: 02 Oct 2008 - 7:00 PDT

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Fluorescence spectroscopy and imaging techniques have been extremely successful in the research fields between biology, chemistry and physics.

When these techniques are applied to microscopic samples, detailed quantitative analysis of typically weak signals is often affected by the presence of fluctuations.

Although fluctuations are mostly regarded as noise, limiting the accuracy of experiments, it has been recognized long ago that fluctuations can also be used to gain additional information about the system.

We discuss how various fluorescence microscopy techniques utilize signal fluctuations carrying important information to learn more about the sample, and minimize effects of unwanted fluctuations, such as photon shot noise.

Journal of the Royal Society Interface

Journal of the Royal Society Interface is the Society's cross-disciplinary publication promoting research at the interface between the physical and life sciences. It offers rapidity, visibility and high-quality peer review and is ranked fifth in JCR's multidisciplinary category. The journal also incorporates Interface Focus, a peer-reviewed, themed supplement, each issue of which concentrates on a specific cross-disciplinary subject.

Journal of the Royal Society Interface