Device and method for rapid three-dimensional capture of image data

A microscope comprising:

• a light source configured for providing excitation light to a sample;
• a means for splitting detection radiation emitted from the sample in response to the excitation light provided to the sample between a first detection path and a second detection path, wherein the detection radiation is guided or is guidable along the first and second detection paths;
• a first detector in the first detection path, wherein the first detector includes detector elements that are arranged in an image plane and are arranged in detector lines in a first line direction;
• a second detector in the second detection path, wherein the second detector includes detector elements that are arranged in an image plane and are arranged in detector lines in a second line direction, the second line direction being different than the first line direction;
• a microlens array disposed upstream of both the first and second detectors in a plane that is conjugate with respect to a system pupil, wherein each microlens of the microlens array is optically assigned in each case a number of detector elements, such that an image line of the first and respectively of the second detector are formed by those detector elements of at least one detector line which are optically assigned to microlenses of the microlens array;
• and
• a readout unit configured for reading out image data of the detectors, wherein the readout unit is configured for selectively reading those detector elements arranged line by line which form an image line.

A method for capturing image data, the method comprising:

• splitting detection radiation of a microscope between a first detection path and a second detection path;
• capturing an item of location information of an origin of the detection radiation;
• capturing a plurality of items of angle information of the detection radiation in each of the first and second detection paths in an image plane;
• capturing, in the first detection path and in the second detection path, image data of a same image with a substantially identical spatial and temporal resolution, wherein the image data represent selected detector elements, of which image data representing a plurality of detector elements in a first image direction are captured in the first detection path and image data representing a plurality of detector elements in a second image direction are captured in the second detection path, wherein the second image direction is different from the first image direction;
• and
• selectively reading out the captured image data of corresponding detector elements by lines of the detector elements.