Serial Time Encoded Amplified Microscopy (STEAM) for high-throughput detection of rare cells

Optical imaging is the most widespread and versatile diagnostics and inspection tool in use today. While most of the current research in imaging is aimed at improving the spatial resolution to below the diffraction limit [1], there are numerous applications that demand improvement in temporal resolution [2]. Imagers with high temporal resolution are needed for studying fast phenomena such as shockwaves, chemical dynamics in living cells, neural activity, laser ablation, and microfluidics biochips. High-speed imaging is ever more important in microscopy because over the micrometer scale, even slow moving phenomena require high temporal resolution [2].