High speed deep tissue imaging system using multiplexed scanned temporal focusing

Abstract

A tissue imaging system includes a laser module for outputting a laser pulse, an optical delay module configured to split a laser pulse received from the laser module into a plurality of time-delayedsub-pulses, a telescope for delivering the sub-pulses from the optical delay module to a target volume and a photodetector configured to collect photons generated within the target volume in responseto excitation of the target volume by the first and second sub-pulses. The system may further include a spatial multiplexing module configured to receive the temporally multiplexed laser pulse from the optical delay module and splitting the temporally multiplexed laser pulse into a plurality of sub-beams including a first sub-beam and a second sub-beam, wherein the first sub-beam and the second sub-beam are spatially separated with respect to a first image plane formed at a first depth within the target volume and with respect to a second image plane formed at a second depth within the targetvolume.

Description

[0001] Cross References to Related Applications [0002] This application claims priority to US Provisional Application No. 62 / 414,788, filed October 30, 2016, the specification of which application is hereby incorporated in its entirety for all purposes. Background technique [0003] A major goal of modern neuroscience is to understand how neural networks perform cognition-related functions. To achieve this goal, it is useful to simultaneously and independently record the activity of large neurons, the building blocks of even the simplest neural networks. However, this task has been hampered by shortcomings in available tools and techniques. [0004] A light microscope solves this problem by nearly simultaneously recording the activity of thousands of neurons in the rodent brain, thereby improving the understanding of information processing in the mammalian brain (including in various healthy and pathological states of the human brain). A major leap forward in the fundamen...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

Even with increased machine scan speeds in the future, fluorescence saturation may eventually impose a limit on overall scan speed, as such increases in scan speed must be accompanied by increased illumination intensities in order to maintain useful signal-to-noise levels

Although other three-dimensional (3D) imaging methods exist that do not rely on point-like two-photon laser scanning, most of them either fail to achieve cell-level imaging resolution by only providing a small V-FOV, or they are still limited due to their propensity to scatter. Far from meeting the above performance goals

Random-access scanning methods, which can increase frame rates by limiting scans to target locations, require prior knowledge of neuron locations and are therefore difficult to apply to conscious animals because neurons move frame by frame

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