Tortarolo, GiorgioZunino, AlessandroFersini, FrancescoCastello, MarcoPiazza, SimonlucaSheppard, Colin J. R.Bianchini, PaoloDiaspro, AlbertoKoho, SamiVicidomini, Giuseppe2023-08-282023-08-282023-08-282022-12-1310.1038/s41467-022-35333-yhttps://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/200177WOS:001028133600009To date, the feasibility of super-resolution microscopy for imaging live and thick samples is still limited. Stimulated emission depletion (STED) microscopy requires high-intensity illumination to achieve sub-diffraction resolution, potentially introducing photodamage to live specimens. Moreover, the out-of-focus background may degrade the signal stemming from the focal plane. Here, we propose a new method to mitigate these limitations without drawbacks. First, we enhance a STED microscope with a detector array, enabling image scanning microscopy (ISM). Therefore, we implement STED-ISM, a method that exploits the working principle of ISM to reduce the depletion intensity and achieve a target resolution. Later, we develop Focus-ISM, a strategy to improve the optical sectioning and remove the background of any ISM-based imaging technique, with or without a STED beam. The proposed approach requires minimal architectural changes to a conventional microscope but provides substantial advantages for live and thick sample imaging.Multidisciplinary SciencesScience & Technology - Other Topicsstimulated-emissionfluorescence nanoscopyconfocal microscopysted nanoscopysuperresolutionresolutiondeconvolutiontooltext::journal::journal article::research article