Spot size variation FCS in simulations of the 2D Ising model

Spot variation fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (svFCS) was developed to study the movement and organization of single molecules in plasma membranes. This experimental technique varies the size of an illumination area while measuring correlations in time using standard fluorescence correlation methods. Frequently, this data is interpreted using the assumption that correlation measurements reflect the dynamics of single molecule motions, and not motions of the average composition. Here, we explore how svFCS measurements report on the dynamics of components diffusing within simulations of a 2D Ising model with a conserved order parameter. Simulated correlation functions report on both the fast dynamics of single component mobility and the slower dynamics of the average composition. Over a range of simulation conditions, a conventional svFCS analysis suggests the presence of anomalous diffusion even though single molecule motions are nearly Brownian in these simulations. This misinterpretation is most significant when the surface density of the fluorescent label is elevated, therefore we suggest future measurements be made over a range of tracer densities. Some simulation conditions reproduce qualitative features of published svFCS experimental data. Overall, this work emphasizes the need to probe membranes using multiple complimentary experimental methodologies in order to draw conclusions regarding the nature of spatial and dynamical heterogeneity in these systems.