A modular software framework for the design and implementation of ptychography algorithms

PeerJ Comput Sci. 2022 Jul 25:8:e1036. doi: 10.7717/peerj-cs.1036. eCollection 2022.

Abstract

Computational methods are driving high impact microscopy techniques such as ptychography. However, the design and implementation of new algorithms is often a laborious process, as many parts of the code are written in close-to-the-hardware programming constructs to speed up the reconstruction. In this article, we present SciComPty, a new ptychography software framework aiming at simulating ptychography datasets and testing state-of-the-art and new reconstruction algorithms. Despite its simplicity, the software leverages GPU accelerated processing through the PyTorch CUDA interface. This is essential for designing new methods that can readily be employed. As an example, we present an improved position refinement method based on Adam and a new version of the rPIE algorithm, adapted for partial coherence setups. Results are shown on both synthetic and real datasets. The software is released as open-source.

Keywords: Computational microscopy; GPU computing; Partial coherence; Phase retrieval; Position refinement; Ptychography; Reconstruction Algorithms; Soft-X-ray; Software framework.

Grants and funding

This research has been developed under the Advanced Integrated Imaging Initiative (AI3), project P2017004 of Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste in agreement with the University of Trieste. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.