Digital imaging of a random walk by computer simulation: Using a simple model to interpret the effects of finite spatio-temporal resolution

Abstract

We discuss computer simulations of a particle that hops forward and backward randomly on a one-dimensional lattice. To track the motion of the particle, we use a data acquisition protocol that mimics a virtual digital optical imaging system. Plots of the data extracted from these images yield a pattern that is similar to the patterns observed in real imaging of a moving particle in a living cell. To explore the physical origin of the observed patterns, we use different spatio-temporal resolutions and show that the characteristics of the observed patterns are determined by the spatial and temporal resolutions of the digital imaging device. The simulations help not only to determine the origin of these patterns in the imaging data, but also to avoid misinterpreting the imaging data in terms of a special property of the particle or its dynamics.