Visualization methods

Visualization (rendering) of SMLM data involves creation of a new super-resolution image based on the coordinates of the localized molecules. ThunderSTORM offers several methods, all of which support both two-dimensional visualization and slice-by-slice three-dimensional visualization. In the three-dimensional case, each image slice contains a visualization of molecules with axial positions in the user-specified range. The desired magnification ratio of the new super-resolution image to the original image is user-specified.

  • Input:

    A list of coordinates with sub-pixel positions of the molecules.

  • Output:

    A super-resolution image with user-specified size and magnification.

Guidelines for the choice of parameters

The proposed average shifted histogram method provides similar results as Gaussian rendering with a fixed sigma, but is orders of magnitude faster. Both methods result in a molecular density map. The Gaussian rendering approach can further show the calculated localization accuracy for each molecule.