Today, charge coupled devices (CCDs) have become the de-facto standard for scientific imaging, In fact, their potential for high resolution, sensitivity, wide dynamic range and low noise has made them the device of choice for most fluorescent microscopy imaging applications, This is especially true for quantitative microscopy applications such as ratio imaging, fluorescent in-situ hybridization and image deconvolution.

However, choosing the most appropriate CCD camera for each application can be quite challenging given the broad range of features and performance specifications. This month's article focuses on a single characteristic of the CCD: the chip grade.