What is Smart Microscopy?

It is becoming obvious that the future of microscopy is smart, with microscopes that can perform real-time analysis ― adjusting acquisition parameters on the fly. These smart microscopes make use of feedback loops, directly reading and processing the acquired image and feeding information back in order to optimise imaging regimes.

Typical implementations of such a feedback loop use the information from the acquisition to change microscope behaviour ― such as imaging modalities, speed, or dimensions. These adjustments can either be performed continuously in order to optimise imaging settings, or can be triggered by specific events ― reducing the need to trade off between field of view, sample health, temporal or spatial resolution, and signal-to-noise ratio.

Overall, smart microscopy is at the intersection of all science and industry areas where imaging with a microscope is needed, ranging from nanofabrication to bioscience.