

Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging
Fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) is an imaging technique that makes use of the inherent properties of fluorescent dyes. Aside from having characteristic emission spectra, each fluorescent molecule has a characteristic lifetime that reflects how long the fluorophore spends in the excited state before emitting a photon. Lifetime analysis provides you with information in addition to your standard fluorescence intensity measurements.
Historically, lifetime imaging has been a slow, complex, and specialized technique. Its use was limited to experienced microscopists or physicists. Leica Microsystems is at the cutting edge of today’s fluorescence lifetime imaging advances. Our systems make lifetime imaging faster and easier to use than ever before, binging its advantages to every day confocal imaging experiments.
Our experts on solutions for FLIM are happy to help you with their advice.
Boost confocal imaging with fluorescence lifetime information
Fluorescence lifetime imaging provides additional information that can help you improve the quality of your confocal imaging. It can be particularly useful to discriminate fluorescence probes that have overlapping fluorescent emission spectra, or to eliminate unwanted background fluorescent signals.
FLIM is a crucial application for measuring and quantifying imaging data. As lifetime information is independent of fluorophore concentration, it is extremely well suited for functional imaging. Functional imaging goes beyond the traditional recording of the location and concentration of molecular species and enables further investigation of molecular function, interactions, and their environment.
Additionally, FLIM enables novel imaging applications, such as the use of biosensors to study the cell’s microenvironment or imaging based on the intrinsic fluorescent properties of your sample.
Learn more about FLIM and its imaging applications with the SP8 FALCON system by referring to this application note.
The lifetime contrast of sepal of silverberry allows to separate different structure within the sample. The intensity image (yellow image) doesn't show any specific structure while the FastFLIM (rainbow scale image) and the lifetime fitted images (RGB, three component image) give insigth into the different part of the sample. The end of the video shows the three structures determined by the lifetime fit split into three channels (RGB).
Setting the standard for lifetime imaging
With the release of the fast and fully integrated lifetime imaging technology – the SP8 FALCON – Leica Microsystems set the benchmark for the future of lifetime imaging. Leica Microsystems received the prestigious R&D 100 Award for the SP8 FALCON system. This award recognizes the solution’s innovative approach to lifetime imaging.
Leica Microsystems solutions for FLIM enable you to harness the power of fluorescence lifetime to extract a new dimension of information from every sample with your confocal experiment. Investigate cellular physiology and explore cellular dynamics with FALCON. Get immediate access to functional information such as metabolic status, pH and ion concentration with the potential of Tausense in STELLARIS.
With our simplified, integrated platforms, you can gain new perspectives on your experiments, allowing you to harness new answers to your experimental questions.

FLIM Products
Filter by Area of Application

STELLARIS
With the STELLARIS confocal platform, we have re-imagined confocal microscopy to get you closer to the truth.

STELLARIS 8 FALCON
The contrast is clear. Lifetime imaging in an instant.
FLIM related articles
How FLIM Microscopy helps to detect microplastic pollution
The use of autofluorescence in biological samples is a widely used method to gain detailed knowledge about systems or organisms. This property is not only found in biological systems, but also…Read articleAdvanced Quantitative Fluorescence Microscopy to Probe the Molecular Dynamics of Viral Entry
Viral entry into the host cell requires the coordination of many cellular and viral proteins in a precise order. Modern microscopy techniques are now allowing researchers to investigate these…Read articleTime-resolved STED microscopy
Introduced more than 30 years ago, stimulated emission depletion (STED) microscopy has raised to a standard and widely used method for imaging in the life sciences. Thanks to continuous technological…Read articleImaging Intracellular Temperature using Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy (FLIM)
This video shows the presentation of Dr. Kohki Okabe given at the 9th Congress of the Federation of Asian and Oceanian Physiological Society (FAOPS) held in Kobe, Japan on 30 March 2019. Dr. Okabe…Read articleSP8 FALCON: a novel concept in fluorescence lifetime imaging enabling video-rate confocal FLIM
SP8 FALCON (FAst Lifetime CONtrast) is a fast and completely integrated fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) confocal platform. SP8 FALCON delivers video-rate FLIM with pixel-by-pixel…Read articleDevelopment of fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) and its relevance for functional imaging
Prof. Ammasi Periasamy, Director, Keck Center for Cellular Imaging, University of Virginia, was interviewed by Dr. Giulia Ossato, Product Manager functional imaging, during Leica Microsystems Meets…Read articleHow FRET/FLIM Biosensors and Lifetime Imaging Helped Identify the Importance of Zinc for Human B-Cell Development
In her latest studies, Dr. Mukta Deobagkar-Lele investigated the role of ZIP7, a zinc transporter protein, in modulating B cell activity and its effects on human immunity. During an interview with Dr.…Read articleSingle-residue bioorthogonal labeling of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) in live cells for quantitative analysis
To perform quantitative studies of membrane bound G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) with high-performance microscopy, the proteins must first be labeled with bright and photostable dyes. The…Read articlePhasor Analysis for FLIM (Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy)
The Phasor analysis approach to analyze fluorescence lifetime does not require any fitting. Phasor FLIM (fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy) provides a 2D graphical view of lifetime…Read articleResearchers use Functional Imaging to Elucidate the Role of Cellular Zn²⁺ in Human Immunity
An international consortium of researchers has found a new mutation in a gene harboring a reticulum-to-cytoplasm zinc transporter. The gene is called ZIP7 and it is responsible for the early onset of…Read articleImage Gallery: Tunable Multicolor Deep In Vivo Imaging
Today’s life science research focusses on complex biological processes, such as the causes of cancer and other human diseases. A deep look into tissues and living specimens is vital to understanding…Read articlePrecise and lightning-fast spectral Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging at video rate integrated in a high-end confocal microscope
Förster (Fluorescence) Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) has become a powerful tool to study protein-protein interactions and signal transduction in living cells. FRET is commonly read out either by…Read articleImage Gallery: FLIM for high-speed investigation of molecular interactions
SP8 FALCON (FAst Lifetime CONtrast) is the fast, and fully integrated platform for fluorescence lifetime imaging (FLIM) and analysis. It enables the observation of fast dynamic cellular events with…Read articleFLIM FRET and Biosensors: Versatile Tools for Biomedical Research
Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging (FLIM) in combination with Förster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) has proven to be very beneficial for investigations in biomedical research for a wide range of…Read articleFLIM FRET - Förster Resonance Energy Transfer
A typical application of FLIM is FLIM-FRET. FRET is a well-established technique to study molecular interactions. It scrutinizes protein binding and estimates intermolecular distances on an Angström…Read article