Multiplexing information limits in multi-beam ptychography

Ptychography is a lensless imaging technique where the sample is laterally scanned by the illuminating beam. In multi-beam ptychography multiple beams simultaneously illuminate the sample, enabling faster scanning of larger areas. In this work, we explore the potential of multi-beam ptychography with a large number of illumination channels to enhance imaging throughput. Our findings show that while spatial resolution is reduced compared to single-beam ptychography, multi-beam ptychography still significantly increases throughput. Using synthetic and experimental data, we demonstrate an almost fivefold improvement in throughput, accompanied by reduced memory footprint and overhead time. Furthermore, we present the successful implementation of massively multiplexed multi-beam ptychography with up to 64 channels. These results pave the way for efficient use of light sources with partial spatial or temporal coherence for ptychography, opening new possibilities for high-throughput imaging applications.