Super-Resolution Microscopy

Monitor showing a stitched fluorescence microscopy image generated by the CrestOptics X-Light DeepSIM V3 system.
Computer monitor displaying a high-resolution, stitched fluorescence image acquired using the CrestOptics X-Light DeepSIM V3 system.
Close-up of CrestOptics X-Light DeepSIM V3 imaging hardware with camera and optical illumination components.
Close-up of the CrestOptics X-Light DeepSIM V3 hardware, showing the camera, illumination unit, and optical components.
CrestOptics X-Light DeepSIM V3 imaging system with microscope and computer monitor displaying microscopy data.
The CrestOptics X-Light DeepSIM V3 super-resolution imaging system integrated with a microscope and computer display for advanced fluorescence imaging.
Angled view of a microscope integrated with the CrestOptics X-Light DeepSIM V3 imaging system.
Angled view of the microscope integrated with the CrestOptics X-Light DeepSIM V3 system, highlighting the eyepieces, stage, and optics.

Super-resolution microscopy enables imaging below the diffraction limit of light, revealing nanoscale cellular structures not visible with conventional techniques. Structured illumination microscopy (SIM) achieves this by projecting patterned light onto the sample and computationally reconstructing fine details. These approaches are typically applied to fixed samples but can also be used for live imaging under some conditions.

Our facility provides both Nikon N-SIM and CrestOptics X-Light DeepSIM/V3 Lattice SIM, offering resolutions down to ~95 nm.

Benefits of super-resolution approaches:

  • Resolves structures beyond conventional optical limits
  • Compatible with multi-color labeling
  • Works with standard sample prep protocols
  • Preserves sample context in 3D
  • Nikon N-SIM
  • A structured illumination microscope that affords a spatial resolution between 95 and 110 nm laterally for fixed samples.
  • CrestOptics X-Light DeepSIM/V3
  • Versatile, live cell imaging suitable, combining spinning disc confocal  with structured illumination imaging covering the entire optical spectrum with 7 laser lines. It combines one of the highest acquisition speeds, with up to 1000 Hz across a 25 mm field of view in confocal mode.