Laminar optical tomography: demonstration of millimeter-scale depth-resolved imaging in turbid media

Laminar optical tomography (LOT) is a new technique that combines the advantages of diffuse optical tomography image reconstruction and a microscopy-based setup to allow noncontact imaging with 100-200-microm resolution effective over depths of 0-2.5 mm. LOT is being developed primarily for multispectral imaging of rat cortex, for which resolving functional dynamics in various layers of the brain's cortex (to depths of 1500 microm) is of increasing interest to neurophysiologists. System design and image reconstruction techniques are described, along with simulation and phantom results that demonstrate the characteristics and limitations of system accuracy and resolution.     

Noncontact optical tomography of turbid media

Optical tomography of turbid media has so far been limited by systems that require fixed geometries or measurements employing fibers. We present a system that records noncontact optical measurements from diffuse media of arbitrary shapes and retrieves the three-dimensional surface information of the diffuse medium. We further present a novel method of combining this composite data set and obtain accurate fluorescence reconstructions. This approach offers significant experimental simplicity and yields high-information-content datasets. The performance of this novel tomographic approach is demonstrated with experimental reconstructions of phantoms.     

Quantitative differential phase measurement and imaging in transparent and turbid media by optical coherence tomography

Differential phase-contrast optical coherence tomography allows one to measure the path-length differences of two transversally separated beams in the nanometer range. We calculate these path-length differences from the phase functions of the interferometric signals. Pure phase objects consisting of chromium layers containing steps of approximately 100-200-nm height were imaged. Phase differences can be measured with a precision of +/-2 degrees , corresponding to a path-difference resolution of 2-3 nm. To investigate the influence of scattering, we imaged the phase objects through scattering layers with increasing scattering coefficients. The limit of phase imaging through these layers was at approximately 8-9 mean free path lengths thick (single pass).     

Photon-transport forward model for imaging in turbid media

A photon-transport forward model for image reconstruction in turbid media is derived that treats weak inhomogeneities through a Born approximation of the Boltzmann radiative transfer equation. This model can conveniently replace the commonly used diffusion approximation in optical tomography. An analytical expression of the background Green's function is obtained from the cumulant solution of the Boltzmann equation. Our model provides the correct behavior of photon migration at early times and reduces at long times to the center-moved diffusion approximation. Numerical comparisons between this model and the standard and center-moved diffusion models are presented.     

浑浊介质中图像对比度与成像方式的关系

浑浊介质中图像对比度的物理增强方法一直是研究热点, 目前学者们提出的距离选通成像、偏振差分成像和偏振距离选通成像均能提高图像的对比度, 但提高效果与成像距离的关系尚不明确. 本文分别利用以上三种成像方式及普通强度成像对处于不同浓度浑浊介质中的目标进行成像, 研究了图像强度和对比度随成像距离的变化情况. 结果表明: 从滤除的散射光强来看, 偏振距离选通成像最优, 而偏振差分成像在成像距离较远时优于距离选通成像; 三种成像方式滤除的散射光强值趋于稳定的阈值距离各不相同; 对比度改变相同量时, 偏振距离选通成像对应成像距离的变化量最大, 偏振差分成像次之, 强度成像最小, 且均与散射系数成反比. 本文对浑浊介质成像效果及机理的分析, 对进一步提高浑浊介质中目标的分辨及识别具有重要意义.     

Ultrasound tagged light imaging in turbid media in a reflectance geometry

A combination of light and focused ultrasound waves provides a unique way to obtain directly three-dimensional absorption data in a turbid medium. We present the combination of an ultrasound wave and light in which both the input and the output optodes are on the same side of the sample (reflectance geometry). This technique permits local detection in depth of the presence of a purely absorbing object, without further mathematical processing. It is a promising technique for medical imaging and monitoring of tissues.     

Extinction coefficient imaging of turbid media using dual structured laser illumination planar imaging

We demonstrate a technique, named dual structured laser illumination planar imaging (SLIPI), capable of acquiring depth-resolved images of the extinction coefficient. This is achieved by first suppressing the multiply scattered light intensity and then measuring the intensity reduction caused by signal attenuation between two laser sheets separated by Δz mm. Unlike other methods also able to measure this quantity, the presented approach is based solely on side-scattering detection. The main advantages of dual SLIPI is that it accounts for multiple scattering, provides two-dimensional information, and can be applied on inhomogeneous media.     

空-频域中自成像分析和解释

基于魏格纳变换和魏格纳分布函数,分析讨论一维物体在空域-频域空间的自成像及其形成过程。从成像过程中各衍射频谱分量的光程差出发,给出Talbot效应和Montgomery效应的统一解释。对于周期物的Talbot效应,得到了用杨氏双缝干涉解释自成像现象的理论依据。周期物的自成像是物平面上间距为2倍周期,光程差为波长的整数平方倍的各衍射频谱分量同相相干迭加的结果。Montgomery效应是物平面上间距为抛物线关系,光程差为波长整数倍的各衍射频谱分量同相相干迭加的结果。     

Computer simulation of time-resolved optical imaging of objects hidden in turbid media

We review research on time-resolved optical imaging of objects hidden in strongly scattering media, with emphasis on the application to breast cancer detection. A method is presented to simulate the propagation of light in turbid media. Based on a numerical algorithm to solve the time-dependent diffusion equation, the method takes into account spatial variations of the reduced scattering and absorption factors of the medium due to the presence of objects as well as random fluctuations of these factors. It is shown that the simulation method reproduces, without fitting, experimental results on tissue-like phantoms. Using experimental and simulation results, an assessment is made of the reliability for extracting the reduced scattering and absorption coefficients of the medium from time-resolved reflection and transillumination data. The simulation technique is employed to study the conditions for locating mm-sized objects immersed in a turbid medium, by direct, time-resolved imaging. We discuss a simple method to enhance the imaging power of the time-resolved technique. The mathematical justification of the method, as well as some applications to simple problems, is given. The simulation technique is employed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the data processing technique. Results of time-resolved reflection experiments and simulations are presented, showing that the use of the latter allow us to locate 1 mm diameter objects under conditions which would prevent detection otherwise. Our results demonstrate that the combination of simulation and the appropriate processing of the diffusive part of the time-resolved reflected or transmitted light intensity may substantially increase the potential of the time-resolved near-infrared diffusive light imaging technique as a diagnostic tool for breast cancer detection.     

Propagation of elliptical flat-topped beam in spatial-frequency domain

Based on a tensor method, the propagation formulae of elliptical flat-topped beam through aligned and misaligned optical systems in spatial-frequency domain are derived analytically. The derived formulae provide a powerful tool for treating the propagation and transformation of elliptical flat-topped beam through complex optical systems in spatial-frequency domain. As a numerical example, the propagation properties of elliptical flat-topped Gaussian beam in free space are studied in spatial-frequency domain.     

Estimation of the scattering coefficients of turbid media using angle-resolved optical frequency-domain imaging

Noninvasive measurements of the scattering coefficients of optically turbid media using angle-resolved optical frequency-domain imaging (OFDI) are demonstrated. It is shown that, by incoherently averaging OFDI reflectance signals acquired at different backscattering angles, speckle noise is reduced, allowing scattering coefficients to be extracted from a single A-line with much higher accuracy than with measurements from conventional OFDI and optical coherence tomography systems. Modeling speckle as a random phasor sum, the relationship between the measurement accuracy and the number of compounded angles is derived. The sensitivity analysis is validated with measurements from a tissue phantom.     

Direct-to-video holographic readout in quantum wells for three-dimensional imaging through turbid media

Customized photorefractive quantum-well devices have been developed for real-time video acquisition of coherence-gated, three-dimensional images in turbid media. Large-field-of-view holographic imaging with direct video capture is now possible. We have evaluated the role of intensity-limited device performance in Fourier-plane and image-plane holography in such devices and, using near-infrared light, have imaged through turbid phantoms of 13 mean free paths' scattering depth with 50-microm transverse and 60-microm depth resolution.     

Polarized optical coherence imaging in turbid media by use of a Zeeman laser

A method that uses a Zeeman laser in conjunction with a Glan-Thompson analyzer to image an object in a turbid medium is proposed. A heterodyne signal is generated only when the scattering photons are partially polarized, and the spatial coherence is not seriously degraded after the signal propagates in the turbid medium. A system combining polarization discrimination with optical coherence detection to image the object in a scattering medium is successfully demonstrated. The medium is a solution of polystyrene microspheres measuring 1.072 mum in diameter suspended in distilled water contained in a 10-mm-thick quartz cuvette. The advantages of this optical system, including better selectivity of the weak partially polarized scattering photons and better imaging ability in higher-scattering media, are discussed.     

Noninvasive detection of inhomogeneities in turbid media with time-resolved log-slope analysis

Detecting foreign objects embedded in turbid media using noninvasive optical tomography techniques is of great importance in many practical applications, such as in biomedical imaging and diagnosis, safety inspection on aircrafts and submarines, and LIDAR techniques. In this paper we develop a novel optical tomography approach based on slope analysis of time-resolved back-scattered signals collected at the medium boundaries where the light source is an ultrafast, short-pulse laser. As the optical field induced by the laser-pulse propagates, the detected temporal signals are influenced by the optical properties of the medium traversed. The detected temporal signatures therefore contain information that can indicate the presence of an inhomogeneity as well as its size and location relative to the laser source and detection systems. The log-slope analysis of the time-resolved back-scattered intensity is shown to be an effective method for extracting the information contained in the signal. The technique is validated by experimental results and by Monte Carlo simulations.     

Multiple passages of light through an absorption inhomogeneity in optical imaging of turbid media

Multiple passages of light through an absorption inhomogeneity of finite size deep within a turbid medium are analyzed for optical imaging by use of the self-energy diagram. The nonlinear correction becomes more important for an inhomogeneity of a larger size and with greater contrast in absorption with respect to the host background. The nonlinear correction factor agrees well with that from Monte Carlo simulations for cw light. The correction is approximately 50%-75% in the near infrared for an absorption inhomogeneity with the typical optical properties found in tissues and five times the size of the transport mean free path.     

Time-gated optical imaging through turbid media using stimulated Raman scattering: Studies on image contrast

In this paper, we report the development of experimental set-up for time-gated optical imaging through turbid media using stimulated Raman scattering. Our studies on the contrast of time-gated images show that for a given optical thickness, the image contrast is better for sample with lower scattering coefficient and higher physical thickness, and that the contrast improves with decreasing value of anisotropy parameters of the scatterers. These results are consistent with time-resolved Monte Carlo simulations.     

Effective point-spread function for fast image modeling and processing in microscopic imaging through turbid media

An effective point-spread function (EPSF) for microscopic imaging through turbid media is proposed and calculated. The EPSF incorporates the property of a microscope system as well as the scattering property of a turbid medium. We prove that the image of a thin object embedded in a turbid medium can be expressed by the convolution of the EPSF with an object function. With the help of the convolution relation, image modeling for 5, 000, 000 incident photons can be approximately 15 times faster than the direct Monte Carlo simulation method for a one-dimensional object and can be at least 2 orders of magnitude faster for a two-dimensional object.     

Propagation of elliptical Gaussian beam through misaligned optical systems in spatial domain and spatial-frequency domain

The propagation formulae of elliptical Gaussian beam through misaligned optical systems in spatial domain and spatial-frequency domain are investigated analytically by using tensor method. The derived formulae provide a powerful tool for treating the propagation and transformation of elliptical Gaussian beam through misaligned optical systems. As an application example, the propagation properties of elliptical Gaussian beam through a misaligned thin lens are illustrated.     

Linear frequency modulation photoacoustic radar: optimal bandwidth and signal-to-noise ratio for frequency-domain imaging of turbid media

The development of the pulse compression photoacoustic (PA) radar using linear frequency modulation (LFM) demonstrated experimentally that spectral matching of the signal to the ultrasonic transducer bandwidth does not necessarily produce the best PA signal-to-noise ratio, and it was shown that the optical and acoustic properties of the absorber will modify the optimal bandwidth. The effects of these factors are investigated in frequency-domain (FD) PA imaging by employing one-dimensional and axisymmetric models of the PA effect, and a Krimholtz-Leedom-Matthaei model for the employed transducers. LFM chirps with various bandwidths were utilized and transducer sensitivity was measured to ensure the accuracy of the model. The theory was compared with experimental results and it was shown that the PA effect can act as a low-pass filter in the signal generation. Furthermore, with the PA radar, the low-frequency behavior of two-dimensional wave generation can appear as a false peak in the cross correlation signal trace. These effects are important in optimizing controllable features of the FD-PA method to improve image quality.     

Theoretical analysis of backscattered polarization patterns of turbid media containing glucose

Single scattering model and Stokes-Mueller formalism are introduced to investigate the influence of glucose on backscattered polarization patterns in turbid media. Glucose molecules rotate the polarization plane and induce changes in backscattered Mueller matrix patterns. Some Mueller matrix elements present higher optical rotation as the concentration of glucose augments. Using image subtraction and integration,linear relationship between low glucose concentration in the physiological range and optical rotation degree can be derived.