Fluorescence-based assays depend on detecting photons. Common to such assays is the notion of the ‘good’ photon, which carries useful assay information, and the ‘bad’ photon, which carries noise, background, or other information that imperils the assay. A robust assay can succeed despite some level of these ‘bad’ photons, but a more sensitive or difficult one might need a much higher ratio of ‘good’ to ‘bad’ photons to ensure success.

Every optical filter has an inherent performance and price point. High performance costs more, but can be more selective for ‘good’ photons, and a lower priced filter may be less selective for ‘good’ photons. In this way, a photon can be assigned a ‘worth’ depending on its level of criticality.

In this webinar, we'll show you how to conduct a cost-benefit analysis that relates this ‘worth’ to your system performance. We use SearchLight™, our tool for modeling photon flow in fluorescence-based optical systems, in real-world flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy scenarios. By comparing filter sets, we discover which filters have the best combination of price and your need for low-noise, low-crosstalk, ‘good’ photon performance. Learn how to optimize filter selection to meet your performance requirements at your budget.