Dong, JonathanMaestre, DanteConrad-Billroth, ClaraJuffmann, Thomas2021-07-312021-07-312021-07-312021-09-3010.1088/1361-6463/ac0f22https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/180313WOS:000672947600001Interferometric imaging is an emerging technique for particle tracking and mass photometry. Mass or position are estimated from weak signals, coherently scattered from nanoparticles or single molecules, and interfered with a co-propagating reference. In this work, we perform a statistical analysis and derive lower bounds on the measurement precision of the parameters of interest from shot-noise limited images. This is done by computing the classical Cramer-Rao bound (CRB) for localization and mass estimation, using a precise vectorial model of interferometric imaging techniques. We then derive fundamental bounds valid for any imaging system, based on the quantum Cramer-Rao formalism. This approach enables a rigorous and quantitative comparison of common techniques such as interferometric scattering microscopy (iSCAT), coherent brightfield microscopy, and dark-field microscopy. In particular, we demonstrate that the light collection geometry in iSCAT greatly increases the axial position sensitivity, and that the Quantum CRB for mass estimation yields a minimum relative estimation error of sigma(m)/m = 1/(2 root N), where N is the number of collected scattered photons.Physics, AppliedPhysicsmicroscopyiscatcobricramer-raofisher informationimagingprecisionpoint-spread functionsgouy phaselabel-freeelectromagnetic diffractionsingletrackinglightresolutionorientationtext::journal::journal article::research article