Higherthanbackground
Higher-than-background (HTB) is a term used in signal processing and data analysis to describe measurements, signals, or features that exceed a defined background level. It is a practical criterion for separating meaningful information from baseline noise or clutter.
HTB relies on an estimate of the background or baseline, against which observed values are compared. The
Detection typically involves applying a threshold: a value is labeled higher-than-background if its magnitude (or another
Applications of HTB appear in microscopy (detecting fluorescent spots), astronomy (identifying celestial sources above the sky
Challenges include background variability, illumination drift, and non-Gaussian noise, which can lead to false positives or
See also: background subtraction, thresholding, signal-to-noise ratio.