In microscopic particle image velocimetry (microPIV) experiments, the entire volume of a flowfield is illuminated, resulting in all of the particles in the field of view contributing to the image. Unlike in light-sheet PIV, where the depth of the measurement volume is simply the thickness of the laser sheet, in microPIV, the measurement volume depth is a function of the image forming optics of the microscope. In a flowfield with out-of-plane motion, the measurement volume (called the depth of correlation) is also a function of the magnitude of the out-of-plane motion within the measurement volume. Equations are presented describing the depth of correlation and its dependence on out-of-plane motion. The consequences of this dependence and suggestions for limiting its significance are also presented. Another result of the out-of-plane motion is that the height of the PIV signal peak in the correlation plane will decrease. Because the height of the noise peaks will not be affected by the out-of-plane motion, this could lead to erroneous velocity measurements. An equation is introduced that describes the effect of the out-of-plane motion on the signal peak height, and its implications are discussed. Finally, the derived analytical equations are compared to results calculated using synthetic PIV images, and the agreement between the two is seen to be excellent.
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