{
  "id": 106585,
  "title": "Bringing it all into focus—computational microscope captures 25.2 billion pixels per second across a wide field of view",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/03/bringing-it-all-into-focus-computational-microscope-captures-25-2",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-03T22:40:01.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Phys.org",
    "slug": "phys-org",
    "url": "https://phys.org/news/2026-08-focus-microscope-captures-billion-pixels.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley have developed a revolutionary computational microscope capable of capturing 25.2 billion pixels per second across a wide field of view. The study, published in Nature Photonics, addresses the longstanding trade-off between speed, field of view, and resolution in optical microscopy. By combining an array of 48 camera sensors, a custom-designed phase mask, and an optimization algorithm, the team achieved unprecedented gigapixel-scale imaging at high speed. The microscope can simultaneously capture micron-scale resolution, a wide area (5 square centimeters), and high frame rates (up to 120 frames per second) – a feat previously unattainable with traditional microscopes. This breakthrough could enable simultaneous imaging of multiple live organisms and track dynamic processes like those in freely moving C. elegans nematodes.",
  "summary": "When designing microscopes, optical engineers have long faced a trade-off between speed, field of view and resolution. But improving one of these properties typically comes at the expense of another. Now, a UC Berkeley–led team of researchers has found a way to address this challenge, opening the door to new possibilities in the field of microscopy.",
  "key_points": [
    "University of California, Berkeley researchers developed computational microscope.",
    "Microscope captures 25.2 billion pixels per second across 5 square centimeters.",
    "Breakthrough enables simultaneous imaging of multiple live organisms."
  ],
  "editors_take": "This development overcomes a fundamental limitation in optical microscopy, allowing for simultaneous high-speed, high-resolution imaging of large areas, which could significantly advance the study of dynamic biological processes.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}