Advancing optical imaging systems with digital fabrication
Abstract
Optical imaging technologies are central to discovery in the life and physical sciences, yet their impact depends on how readily they can be built, adapted, and sustained across laboratories. Digital fabrication, including desktop 3D printing, offers new ways to engineer imaging instruments by simplifying assembly, lowering replication barriers, and enabling modular integration and local refinement. Here we examine, using open microscopy as a transparent case, how digitally fabricated components support adaptable, research-grade optical systems while enabling faster innovation cycles and distributed improvement. We outline practical design guidelines and discuss emerging developments that may further advance accessible, high-performance imaging.
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BibTeX
@misc{wenzel2026advancing,
title = {{Advancing optical imaging systems with digital fabrication}},
author = {Tobias Wenzel and Richard Bowman and Gemma S. Cairns and Benedict Diederich and Matias Hurtado and Vicente Parot and Vittorio Saggiomo},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2605.00853},
eprint = {2605.00853},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.00853},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Advancing optical imaging systems with digital fabrication
AU - Tobias Wenzel
AU - Richard Bowman
AU - Gemma S. Cairns
AU - Benedict Diederich
AU - Matias Hurtado
AU - Vicente Parot
AU - Vittorio Saggiomo
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/26
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2605.00853
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.00853
AB - Optical imaging technologies are central to discovery in the life and physical sciences, yet their impact depends on how readily they can be built, adapted, and sustained across laboratories. Digital fabrication, including desktop 3D printing, offers new ways to engineer imaging instruments by simplifying assembly, lowering replication barriers, and enabling modular integration and local refinement. Here we examine, using open microscopy as a transparent case, how digitally fabricated components support adaptable, research-grade optical systems while enabling faster innovation cycles and distributed improvement. We outline practical design guidelines and discuss emerging developments that may further advance accessible, high-performance imaging.
ER -