Light Pipe Beam Shaping for Uniform Illumination on Oblique Planes
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Solution Overview
Problem
High-throughput optical fluorescence systems face challenges in maintaining uniform illumination across large sample areas due to oblique light incidence, leading to intensity variations and beam profile distortions, which limit system throughput.
Innovation Solution
The use of specially designed diode lasers and multiple trapezoidal light pipes with carefully adjusted laser power ratios to produce a high-power light beam with a uniform intensity distribution on an oblique plane, matching the shape of the sample area addressed by a high-resolution microscope.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If light is incident at an oblique angle to illuminate a large sample area, then the sample area can be illuminated, but the intensity distribution becomes non-uniform with a large high-to-low ratio
Solution Approach 1:
The illumination system is divided into multiple independent light pipes (at least two), each contributing to a specific region of the sample area. By segmenting the illumination source and controlling each segment's intensity independently, the system achieves uniform overall illumination despite oblique incidence angles.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the illumination system are assigned different light intensities and angular distributions tailored to their specific requirements. Each light pipe is optimized for its local region, with adjusted emission characteristics to compensate for the oblique angle effects in that particular area, achieving local optimization that results in global uniformity.
2Ease of operation
If light is incident at an oblique angle, then the detection module can be positioned normally to the sample, but the beam profile becomes distorted and does not match the sample area shape
Solution Approach 1:
The light pipes are designed with asymmetric geometries and angular distributions that specifically compensate for the distortion caused by oblique incidence. The asymmetric design of the light pipes counteracts the asymmetric distortion introduced by the oblique angle, restoring the beam profile to match the square sample area shape.
Solution Approach 2:
The illumination system is designed to pre-distort the beam profile in the opposite direction of the expected distortion from oblique incidence. By inverting the distortion beforehand, the final beam profile on the sample area achieves the desired shape match, effectively canceling out the adverse effects of oblique illumination.
3Illumination intensity
If multiple light pipes are used to improve intensity uniformity, then the high-to-low intensity ratio improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Each light pipe is designed to perform multiple functions: it provides illumination, shapes the beam profile, and compensates for angular distortion simultaneously. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional separate components, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity despite using multiple light pipes.
Solution Approach 2:
The illumination, beam shaping, and angular correction functions are merged into the light pipe design itself rather than using separate components for each function. This integration approach achieves the desired intensity uniformity while minimizing the increase in overall system complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach achieves a high-to-low intensity ratio close to unity, ensuring uniform illumination and correcting beam profile distortions, thereby enhancing system throughput and matching the light beam shape to the sample area, even when the illumination axis is oblique to the detection/observation module.
Implementation Method 1
The use of specially designed diode lasers and two or more light pipes to produce a high-power light beam with a uniform intensity distribution on an oblique plane
Data Source
AI summary
A high power uniform light beam is generated on an oblique plane by one or more diode lasers and 2 or more light pipes. The light pipes may be trapezoidal so that the illuminated area is substantially square. The light pipes may be elliptical so that the illuminated area is substantially circular.