The Airyscan detector from ZEISS: confocal imaging with improved signal-to-noise ratio and super-resolution

Abstract

With Airyscan, ZEISS introduced a new detector concept for confocal laser-scanning microscopy (LSM). Whereas traditional LSM designs use a combination of pinhole and single-point detectors, Airyscan is a 32-channel gallium arsenide phosphide photomultiplier tube (GaAsP-PMT) area detector that collects a pinhole-plane image at every scan position. Each detector element functions as a single, very small pinhole. Knowledge about the beam path and the spatial distribution of each detector channel enables very light-efficient imaging with improved resolution and signal-to-noise ratio.