Fluorescence microscopy enables visualization of cellular structures with molecular specificity, yet conventional methods remain limited by diffraction to resolutions of ~250 nm. Super-resolution microscopy overcomes this resolution barrier, with minimal fluorescence photon fluxes microscopy (MINFLUX) representing the current state-of-the-art in point scanning microscopy. MINFLUX probes single emitters with an intensity minimum in a targeted coordinate pattern (TCP) and typically achieves 1 nm to 3 nm localization uncertainty. However, this performance is coupled to a small localization range as the localization uncertainty grows rapidly when the emitter lies outside the TCP. Therefore MINFLUX requires a pre-localization step and iterative recentering to keep the emitter inside the TCP, combined with increasing laser power to ensure signal from the emitter. Here we present ISM-FLUX, a technique that combines the MINFLUX concept with image scanning microscopy (ISM). ISM-FLUX combines orbital scanning of a donut-shaped excitation with a 5 × 5 single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) array detector, extending the localization range to ~600 × 600 nm² while achieving 2 nm to 10 nm localization uncertainty with ~10³ photons. Unlike single-element detection, the SPAD array detector provides spatial information of photons, resulting in camera-like information that prevents Cramér-Rao bound (CRB) divergence across the extended field. The orbital scanning geometry operates on standard galvanometric mirrors, requiring only a vortex phase plate and SPAD array to convert a confocal microscope into an ISM-FLUX system. We validated ISM-FLUX experimentally using DNA-origami nanorulers with 20 nm and 40 nm binding-site separations, resolving these distances even when the structures are positioned outside the TCP orbit. To support long acquisitions, we built a custom 3D active stabilization module that maintains sub-nanometer sample drift over hours in closed loop. The same platform integrates a co-registered widefield single-molecule localization microscopy (SMLM) path for large field-of-view (FoV) context and correlative workflows, achieving σ_NeNA ≈ 7.83 nm. Together, these results show that ISM-FLUX delivers MINFLUX-style localization over an extended range within a point-scanning architecture. By simplifying MINFLUX microscopy and extending its capabilities within existing confocal infrastructure, ISM-FLUX provides an accessible path toward molecular-scale imaging that could accelerate broader adoption of single-molecule localization techniques in biological research.

Array detection enables large localization range for simple and robust MINFLUX

PATIL, SANKET BALKRISHNA
2026-04-10

Abstract

Fluorescence microscopy enables visualization of cellular structures with molecular specificity, yet conventional methods remain limited by diffraction to resolutions of ~250 nm. Super-resolution microscopy overcomes this resolution barrier, with minimal fluorescence photon fluxes microscopy (MINFLUX) representing the current state-of-the-art in point scanning microscopy. MINFLUX probes single emitters with an intensity minimum in a targeted coordinate pattern (TCP) and typically achieves 1 nm to 3 nm localization uncertainty. However, this performance is coupled to a small localization range as the localization uncertainty grows rapidly when the emitter lies outside the TCP. Therefore MINFLUX requires a pre-localization step and iterative recentering to keep the emitter inside the TCP, combined with increasing laser power to ensure signal from the emitter. Here we present ISM-FLUX, a technique that combines the MINFLUX concept with image scanning microscopy (ISM). ISM-FLUX combines orbital scanning of a donut-shaped excitation with a 5 × 5 single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) array detector, extending the localization range to ~600 × 600 nm² while achieving 2 nm to 10 nm localization uncertainty with ~10³ photons. Unlike single-element detection, the SPAD array detector provides spatial information of photons, resulting in camera-like information that prevents Cramér-Rao bound (CRB) divergence across the extended field. The orbital scanning geometry operates on standard galvanometric mirrors, requiring only a vortex phase plate and SPAD array to convert a confocal microscope into an ISM-FLUX system. We validated ISM-FLUX experimentally using DNA-origami nanorulers with 20 nm and 40 nm binding-site separations, resolving these distances even when the structures are positioned outside the TCP orbit. To support long acquisitions, we built a custom 3D active stabilization module that maintains sub-nanometer sample drift over hours in closed loop. The same platform integrates a co-registered widefield single-molecule localization microscopy (SMLM) path for large field-of-view (FoV) context and correlative workflows, achieving σ_NeNA ≈ 7.83 nm. Together, these results show that ISM-FLUX delivers MINFLUX-style localization over an extended range within a point-scanning architecture. By simplifying MINFLUX microscopy and extending its capabilities within existing confocal infrastructure, ISM-FLUX provides an accessible path toward molecular-scale imaging that could accelerate broader adoption of single-molecule localization techniques in biological research.
10-apr-2026
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11567/1292096
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