Phage density (titer) determination in terms of the fraction of bacteria killed.
The technique is based on the assumption that phages adsorb to bacteria as a Poisson distribution and requires that all or nearly all phages within a stock successfully phage adsorb (that is, unadsorbed phages will not be counted). It is particular useful as a means of titering inviable phages so long as those phages remain adsorption and bacteria-killing competent.
The concept of killing titers, along with decimal reduction time, is useful toward understanding what phage densities are necessary to effect bacterial eradication during phage therapy. To my knowledge the first publication describing killing titer determinations, however, is that of Luria and Dulbecco (1949); see Table 1 of that paper.
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