Measurement of optical constants for dense media by low-coherence dynamic light scattering

We perform the optical constants measurements for different absorption dense media by low-coherence dynamic light scattering (DLS) technique. The estimated particle size is used to calculate the scattering coefficient of particles suspended in dense media. The path-length resolved intensity distributions of light backscattered from the absorbing dense media are investigated experimentally by virtue of path-length resolved performance in low-coherence DLS measurements. The absorption coefficient can be obtained by applying the measured path-length resolved intensity distributions to the modified Lambert-Beer law. As a result, we proposed a new low-coherence DLS technique in simultaneous measurement of the scattering and absorption coefficients of absorbing dense media.     

Path-length distribution and path-length-resolved Doppler measurements of multiply scattered photons by use of low-coherence interferometry

We report first results of measurements by low-coherence Doppler interferometry of the path-length distribution of photons undergoing multiple scattering in a highly turbid medium. We use a Mach-Zehnder interferometer with multimode graded-index fibers and a superluminescent diode as the light source. The path-length distribution is obtained by recording of the heterodyne fluctuations that arise from the Brownian motion of particles in an Intralipid suspension as a function of the optical path length. The experimental path-length distribution is in good agreement with predictions of Monte Carlo simulations. In the heterodyne spectrum, an increase of the mean Doppler frequency with path length is observed.     

生物组织单光程光谱技术的理论研究

高灵敏度光谱检测技术在临床诊疗和组织光学参数测量中具有极其重要的意义。文章提出了一种差分调制激光光谱技术,将经过生物组织后的散射光与参考光的光程差转换为光谱信号的频率特征,通过相敏检测技术将不同频率的信号进行分离,从而实现生物组织散射光的光程分离。文章分析了差分调制激光光谱的机理及信号的谱特征,并基于文献中的生物组织散射光的光程分布,从理论上讨论了差拍信号的谱特征,即光源调制速率一定时,光谱信号中的主频成分位置只与散射光和参考光的光程差有关;生物组织对光信号的衰减系数会影响光谱信号中频率成分的能量强度分布。分析结果表明,差分调制激光光谱能对生物组织的光谱信号进行光程分离,从而实现生物组织的单光程光谱检测。     

Spectral-domain optical coherence phase microscopy for quantitative phase-contrast imaging

We describe a novel microscopy technique for quantitative phase-contrast imaging of a transparent specimen. The technique is based on depth-resolved phase information provided by common path spectral-domain optical coherence tomography and can measure minute phase variations caused by changes in refractive index and thickness inside the specimen. We demonstrate subnanometer level path-length sensitivity and present images obtained on reflection from a known phase object and human epithelial cheek cells.     

Rapid scanning all-reflective optical delay line for real-time optical coherence tomography

We describe a dispersion-free high-speed scanning optical delay line that is suitable for real-time optical coherence tomography, in particular, when an ultrabroadband light source is used. The delay line is based on all-reflective optics consisting of two flat and one curved mirrors. We achieve optical path-length scanning by oscillating one of the two flat mirrors with a resonant galvanometer. The delay line is compact and easy to implement. A total scanning depth of 1.50 mm with an 89% duty ratio, a maximal scanning speed of approximately 9.1 m/s, and a 4.1-kHz repetition rate has been demonstrated.     

Bifocal optical coherenc refractometry of turbid media

We propose and demonstrate a novel technique, which we term bifocal optical coherence refractometry, for the rapid determination of the refractive index of a turbid medium. The technique is based on the simultaneous creation of two closely spaced confocal gates in a sample. The optical path-length difference between the gates is measured by means of low-coherence interferometry and used to determine the refractive index. We present experimental results for the refractive indices of milk solutions and of human skin in vivo. As the axial scan rate determines the acquisition time, which is potentially of the order of tens of milliseconds, the technique has potential for in vivo refractive-index measurements of turbid biological media under dynamic conditions.     

The improvement of the measuring level of the surface curvature based on the spot-radius of a collimated Gaussian laser beam

In this study, we propose a system for determining the curvature of a material surface by a collimated Gaussian laser beam (CGLB) as the test light source. We will demonstrate that the measuring level can be improved and the experimental procedure can be reduced. The spot-radius of the test beam is nearly a constant and it is independent of the swing of the spot intensity. The proposed system can decrease the optical path-length and has the higher sensitivity and accuracy than the test system by using a Gaussian laser beam (GLB).     

Chiral molecules split light: Reflection and refraction in a chiral liquid

A light beam changes direction as it enters a liquid at an angle from another medium, such as air. Should the liquid contain molecules that lack mirror symmetry, then it has been predicted by Fresnel that the light beam will not only change direction, but will actually split into two separate beams with a small difference in the respective angles of refraction. Here we report the observation of this phenomenon. We also demonstrate that the angle of reflection does not equal the angle of incidence in a chiral medium. Unlike conventional optical rotation, which depends on the path-length through the sample, the reported reflection and refraction phenomena arise within a few wavelengths at the interface and thereby suggest a new approach to polarimetry that can be used in microfluidic volumes.     

高散射媒质中的光程可分割动态光散射研究

为研究散射光强度随光子在散射媒质中散射光程的变化,基于单散射理论与扩散波光谱理论,采用了低相干动态光散射装置对不同粒径大小的聚苯乙烯悬浮液进行研究。将测量得到的背散射光光场强度谱的线宽与相应的理论计算结果相比较发现,在短光程区域,考虑容器壁附近拖曳效应的影响后,对于不同粒径的颗粒,光程为约5倍粒子平均自由程的区域可看成为单散射区域;对于光程大于225 m的区域可看成为扩散光波区域。实验结果表明低相干动态光散射法可实现高散射媒质从单散射区域到低次散射再到扩散区域的全光程的可分割的光场强度谱测量。     

Very long optical path-length from a compact multi-pass cell

The multiple-pass optical cell is an important tool for laser absorption spectroscopy and its many applications. For most practical applications, such as trace-gas detection, a compact and robust design is essential. Here, we report an investigation into a multi-pass cell design based on a pair of cylindrical mirrors, with a particular focus on achieving very long optical paths. We demonstrate a path-length of 50.31 m in a cell with 40 mm diameter mirrors spaced 88.9 mm apart—a 3-fold increase over the previously reported longest path-length obtained with this type of cell configuration. We characterize the mechanical stability of the cell and describe the practical conditions necessary to achieve very long path-lengths.     

Fourier phase microscopy for investigation of biological structures and dynamics

By use of the Fourier decomposition of a low-coherence optical image field into two spatial components that can be controllably shifted in phase with respect to each other, a new high-transverse-resolution quantitative-phase microscope has been developed. The technique transforms a typical optical microscope into a quantitative-phase microscope, with high accuracy and a path-length sensitivity of lambda/5500, which is stable over several hours. The results obtained on epithelial and red blood cells demonstrate the potential of this instrument for quantitative investigation of the structure and dynamics associated with biological systems without sample preparation.     

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).     

Mach-Zehnder interferometers assembled with optical microfibers or nanofibers

We demonstrate Mach-Zehnder interferometers (MZI) assembled using optical microfibers or nanofibers (MNFs) drawn from silica fibers and tellurite glasses. As-assembled MZIs, with dimensions of tens to hundreds of micrometers, show good interference fringes with extinction ratios of approximately 10 dB. The path-length difference of the MZI can be tuned by micromanipulation under an optical microscope. The MNF-assembled MZIs demonstrated here show advantages of easy fabrication, in situ tunability, and compact size.     

Correction of atmospheric scattering effects in space-based observations of carbon dioxide: Model study of desert dust aerosol

We describe an original methodology for CO₂ retrievals using space-based measurements of reflected sunlight spectra. The effects of optical-path modification by aerosols were considered in terms of photon path-length statistics. First, the general approach was verified using a representative set of photon trajectories produced by the Monte Carlo technique. This method enabled accurate consideration of optical-path modification by aerosols and was effective in CO₂ retrievals if aerosol optical properties were assumed. The next approach involved a limited number of parameters that describe the photon path-length distribution function (PPDF) and which were retrieved simultaneously with the CO₂ amount. This approach was efficient under conditions of strong path modification by desert dust aerosol. The retrieval procedure included the following: estimation of PPDF parameters from radiance spectra in the O₂ A-band; the necessary correction to use these estimated parameters in the 1.6-μm band; and, finally, CO₂ retrievals from the 1.6-μm band. The procedure was verified by numerical simulations using an independent radiative transfer approach to produce radiance spectra expected for the Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite (GOSAT) sensor.     

Optical path-length matrix method for estimating skin spectrum

In this article, we propose a new method??the optical path-length matrix method (OPLM)??as a faster alternative to the Monte Carlo for multi-layered media (MCML), which is often used to simulate the skin spectrum. Theoretically, peripheral oxygen saturation can be estimated by iterating MCML, but it is not a realistic strategy because it requires huge computation time. The optical path-length matrix is obtained as the probabilistic density histograms of the optical path length in skin using MCML, and once the matrix is obtained, skin spectral reflectance can be calculated by accumulating all combinations of elements in the matrix and by setting an absorption coefficient based on the Beer-Lambert law. The computational time of OPLM was approximately 26,000 times faster than that of MCML.     

Making an optical vortex and its copies using a single spatial light modulator

We demonstrate a technique for making copies of optical vortices with the same topological charge using a single spatial light modulator. It has been shown that by using suitable diffractive optical elements, several copies of optical vortices with the same topological charge could be created. We have devised diffractive optical elements using a single spatial light modulator which could be used to make a vortex and its copies without inverting the charge. The nature of the topological charge was investigated with the interferometric technique. The experimental results are verified with the theoretical analysis. We anticipate that our results may find applications ranging from optical manipulation to quantum information.     

四频差动激光陀螺最佳工作点实时控制技术

为了降低四频差动激光陀螺（FMDLG）零偏对外界因素影响的敏感性,采用了最佳工作点实时控制技术。该技术使用色散平衡和稳频偏置的方法,对增益区磁场和失谐频率进行小幅度正弦调制,在FMDLG输出零偏中解调出误差信号,经负反馈控制回路使FMDLG在对外界干扰敏感性最小的唯一最佳工作点下工作。与仅使用光强差进行稳频的传统方法相比,最佳工作点控制技术大大降低了FMDLG的磁敏感度和零偏稳定性,证实了FMDLG最佳工作点实时控制技术的有效性;静态、动态测试实验结果证明了该技术的正确性。     

Diffraction phase microscopy for quantifying cell structure and dynamics

We have developed diffraction phase microscopy as a new technique for quantitative phase imaging of biological structures. The method combines the principles of common path interferometry and single-shot phase imaging and is characterized by subnanometer path-length stability and millisecond-scale acquisition time. The potential of the technique for quantifying nanoscale motions in live cells is demonstrated by experiments on red blood cells.     

In vivo measurement of the local optical properties of tissue by use of differential path-length spectroscopy

We demonstrate the capability of differential path-length spectroscopy (DPS) to determine the local optical properties of tissue in vivo. DPS measurements on bronchial mucosa are analyzed and yield information on the local blood oxygenation, blood content, average microvessel diameter, and wavelength dependence of the reduced scattering coefficient. Our data collected to date show that cancerous bronchial mucosa has a lower capillary oxygenation and a larger average capillary diameter than normal bronchial mucosa.     

Speckle diagnostics of multiple scattering media with the use of frequency-modulated laser radiation

A method for probing randomly inhomogeneous multiple scattering media with the use of frequency-modulated laser radiation is considered. The method is based on analysis of the dependence of the blinking index of time-averaged speckles formed upon scattering of the probing radiation in a medium on the frequency modulation depth of the probing radiation. In the case of a binary frequency modulation, the blinking index of the detected speckle-modulated radiation is determined by the cosine Fourier transform of the probability density of the optical path-length difference of partial components of the scattered field in the probed medium. The values of the probability density of the optical path-length difference reconstructed with the use of the proposed method from the measured blinking index of speckles for model scattering media (fluoroplastic layer and layer of TiO₂ particles on a glass substrate) are in a good agreement with the results of statistical simulation of the probing radiation transfer in multiple scattering media.