Quartz PCI — Microscope Image Acquisition & Analysis Software

Quartz PCI is professional microscopy image acquisition, processing, archiving, measurement and reporting software developed by Quartz Imaging Corporation. It is designed specifically for microscopists and is used by thousands of researchers worldwide to manage all aspects of the digital imaging workflow - from image capture through to analysis, reporting, and long-term archiving.

Quartz PCI is used primarily by laboratory scientists, microscopists, materials scientists, and researchers across industries including semiconductor manufacturing, advanced materials, nanotechnology, aerospace, automotive, energy, and academic research.

Quartz PCI covers five primary functional areas:

• Image Acquisition - Capturing images from a wide range of microscopy instruments and devices
• Image Processing - Filtering, enhancement, color correction, rotation, tilt correction, and image mixing
• Image Measurement - Measurement of distances, angles, surface areas and shapes
• Image Annotation - Adding text, arrows, scale bars, geometric shapes, and overlays to images
• Reporting and Archiving - Generating professional reports and storing images in a structured database

The current version is Quartz PCI Version 12, released in 2025.

Quartz PCI Version 12 runs on 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Microsoft Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, and Windows 11

Quartz PCI supports image acquisition from virtually any image-producing device, including:

• SEMs
• TEMs
• Light microscopes
• TWAIN devices such as high-resolution cameras on light microscopes

PCI can import calibrated images with embedded calibration data from most major EM manufacturers, including Delong, FEI, Gatan (DM3, DM4), Hitachi, Hitachi CDSEM, JEOL, Phenom, Tescan, ThermoFisher, and Zeiss. Keyence light microscope files are also supported, as is the EMD file format (added in Version 12).

PCI supports import of most popular image file formats. Supported save formats include TIFF, JPEG, BMP, JPEG2000, and PNG.

PCI also imports the EMSA format for EDX x-ray spectra.

The PCI/Spider version is used with instruments that output digital image files directly, enabling a hands-free acquisition workflow.

It automatically monitors a designated "hot folder" and loads any images that are saved to that folder into PCI.

PCI includes a full set of processing tools including:

• Contrast, brightness, and gamma adjustment via histogram functions
• Smoothing, sharpening, and median filtering
• Color correction and false coloring
• Image resizing and fine rotation (with separate coarse and fine sliders in v12)
• Tilt correction (compensates for stage tilt before measurement)
• Reverse raster rotation (using calibration data embedded in the image file)
• Image mixing using arithmetic operators
• Anaglyph stereo image construction from left/right image pairs
• Zooming, panning, and slide show display

Yes. PCI includes a Tilt Correction function that compensates for stage tilt prior to performing measurements. The image status bar also displays whether tilt correction has been applied.

Yes. PCI includes an SEM Image Sharpness Measurement function that calculates sharpness using the FT and DR methods described in ISO standard ISO/TS 24597. It can operate on single or multiple images and integrates with PCI's report editor to produce custom instrument performance reports.

PCI includes a comprehensive set of manual measurement tools:

• Distance measurement (including caliper tool)
• Angle measurement (including four-point angle)
• Curve length and polyline length
• Shape measurement tools (circles, ellipses, rectangles, polygons, freehand shapes)
• Micron marker functions for images that do not contain an embedded scale marker
• Measurement Sequence - allows a pre-programmed sequence of measurements to be repeated
• Measurement Grid - displays results in a spreadsheet that can be exported to Excel

Yes. Measurement results are displayed in a spreadsheet grid within PCI and can be easily pasted or exported to Microsoft Excel or other software.

Yes, through the optional PCI-AM (Automated Measurement) module. PCI Version 12 works with PCI-AM Version 9, which provides fully automated measurement of features in microscopy images.

PCI provides a complete annotation toolkit including text, arrows, lines, circles/ellipses, rectangles, polygons, freehand shapes, and scale bars. All annotations are placed on a separate overlay layer, meaning they can be moved, edited, or deleted without affecting the underlying image. Drawing elements can also be rotated.

Yes. PCI includes an “Apply to Image” option that permanently marks annotations into the image file.

Yes. PCI is a Unicode application, which allows images to be annotated and reports to be generated using Unicode characters. This supports languages that do not use Roman characters and facilitates data sharing within international organizations. This functionality was added in PCI v11.

PCI includes a comprehensive built-in report editor that supports:

• Layout of images, text, and drawing elements on any number of pages
• Master page templates
• Grid and snap-to-grid alignment
• Automatic population of database fields within reports
• Automatic report generation from templates
• Export to PDF, Microsoft Word, and PowerPoint (PPTX) formats

Yes. Job and client reports created in PCI can be exported directly to PPTX format without requiring Microsoft Office to be installed on the workstation. This feature is available to Quartz LIMS customers.

Yes. PCI provides a fast report merge function that combines multiple reports for the same job in the correct sample sequence. This feature is available to Quartz LIMS customers.

Yes. A Workgroup Database is included as a standard feature with PCI. It tracks jobs, sessions, samples, images, and external documents including multimedia files. An Enterprise Database (SQL Server) is available as an option for larger, multi-user environments.

Yes. The PCI database is ODBC-compliant, ensuring compatibility with third-party tools such as Microsoft Access.

Yes. PCI provides powerful database query capabilities that allow you to search for images based on keywords and a wide range of other criteria.

Yes. PCI allows you to burn CDs and DVDs directly from within the application, with full support for removable media.

The "Send To" function allows documents and files from other Windows applications to be sent directly to the PCI database. As of Version 12, it supports file transfers of files greater than 4 GB in size.

Quartz PCI is sold by subscription. As a subscriber, you receive ongoing access to technical support and periodic updates to the latest version.

A PCI subscription includes access to the current version of the software, ongoing technical support, and periodic software updates as they are released.

If the computer has internet access, activation occurs automatically the first time the software is launched. If automatic activation fails, you can activate manually by saving an Activation Request file and uploading it to https://activation.quartzimaging.com, or by emailing the file to activate@quartzimaging.com

Yes. Manual activation is available. You save the Activation Request file to a USB drive, transfer it to an internet-connected computer, upload it to the Quartz Imaging activation portal, then return the License Key file to the offline computer and load it into PCI.

Quartz Imaging provides technical support to all active subscribers. You can contact Quartz Imaging directly via the support email listed on the Contact page. PCI Version 12 also includes a direct link in the Help menu to Quartz Imaging's technical support AI chatbot, which provides instant answers to common support questions.

Yes. The Help menu in PCI Version 12 includes a link to Quartz Imaging's technical support AI chatbot. The chatbot is continuously updated with the latest product information.