Theoretical model of errors in micromirror-based three-dimensional particle tracking.

Several recently developed particle-tracking and imaging methods have achieved three-dimensional sensitivity through the introduction of angled micromirrors into the observation volume of an optical microscope. We model the imaging response of such devices and show how the direct and reflected images of a fluorescent particle are affected. In particle-tracking applications, asymmetric image degradation manifests itself as systematic tracking errors. Based on our results, we identify strategies for reducing systematic errors to the 10nm level in practical applications.