Multiple imaging axis microscopy improves resolution for thick-sample applications

The multiple imaging axis microscope (MIAM) is a wide-field optical microscope that observes a sample simultaneously from multiple directions without requiring the sample to be rotated or tilted. The prototype is capable of high-resolution imaging of the interior of a 300-microm-diameter sample consisting of fluorescent microbeads suspended in an agarose gel. Compared with a single-axis system, the MIAM can achieve a reduction of the axial point-spread function elongation by a factor of 5.8 and a 3.5-fold improvement in volume resolution by simple linear image combination techniques.