Tilted Pseudo-Nondiffracting Beam PSFs for Single-Viewpoint Tomography
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional optical microscopy techniques, such as widefield microscopes, face challenges in providing optical sectioning capabilities for 3D imaging due to out-of-focus structures and require scanning, which limits their application in scenarios requiring high temporal resolution like brain neural activity or cell growth monitoring.
Innovation Solution
A single viewpoint imaging system using Tilted Pseudo-Nondiffracting Beams (TPNDBs) as a point spread function (PSF) in a coded phase mask (CPM) for widefield microscopes, enabling optical sectioning without scanning by cross-correlating recorded images with pre-acquired PSFs to reconstruct a final image.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional scanning microscopy is used to achieve optical sectioning, then 3D imaging capability is improved, but imaging speed deteriorates due to long scanning process
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical scanning system with a computational approach. Instead of physically scanning the sample or moving optical components to achieve optical sectioning, the system uses a single widefield image captured by a camera and processes it through computational algorithms (such as deconvolution or single-point-response methods) to reconstruct optically sectioned 3D images. This substitution of mechanical scanning with computational processing achieves both rapid imaging and optical sectioning capability.
2Productivity
If widefield microscopy illuminates the entire sample to enable rapid imaging, then imaging speed is improved, but optical sectioning capability deteriorates due to out-of-focus structures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the optical sectioning mechanism (which would require scanning or confocal apertures) with a computational processing system. The widefield illumination captures all light from the sample including out-of-focus structures, and then computational algorithms separate the in-focus signal from out-of-focus background, achieving optical sectioning without mechanical scanning or complex optical sectioning hardware.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary capture of the entire sample in a single widefield image, containing all spatial information. The computational processing then acts on this pre-captured data to extract optically sectioned information, avoiding the need for sequential scanning or multiple focal plane acquisitions. This preliminary capture approach enables both speed and optical sectioning.
3Measurement precision
If scanning microscopy is used to achieve optical sectioning, then 3D imaging capability is improved, but temporal resolution deteriorates due to sequential scanning
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the sequential mechanical scanning process with a parallel computational processing approach. A single widefield image capturing all spatial information is processed computationally to generate optically sectioned 3D images, eliminating the time penalty of sequential scanning while maintaining 3D imaging capability. This enables temporal resolution in the millisecond range or better.
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
The system allows for high-resolution 3D imaging with minimal camera shots and no scanning, effectively rejecting out-of-focus light and revealing obstructed portions, suitable for thick samples and volumetric reconstruction.
Implementation Method 1
a TPNDBs (tilted pseudo-nondiffracting beams)-type coded phase mask (CPM) configured to receive a light beam passed through the object or reflected therefrom, and to produce TPNDBs directed towards a sensing array
Implementation Method 2
Tilted Pseudo-Nondiffracting Beams (TPNDBs) as a point spread function (PSF) in a coded phase mask (CPM) for widefield microscopes, enabling optical sectioning without scanning
Implementation Method 3
a sensing array configured to record an image formed by said TPNDBs impinged thereon
Implementation Method 4
a processor configured to: (c1) separately cross-correlating said recorded image with at least one point-spread function (PSF) previously acquired or calculated at the same system with the same CPM
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a single viewpoint imaging system for optically sectioning an object from a single viewpoint, comprising: (a) a TPNDBs (tilted pseudo-nondiffracting beams)-type coded phase mask (CPM) configured to receive a light beam passed through the object or reflected therefrom, and to produce TPNDBs directed towards a sensing array; (b) said sensing array configured to record an image formed by said TPNDBs impinged thereon; (c) a processor configured to: (c1) separately cross-correlating said recorded image with at least one point-spread function (PSF) previously acquired or calculated at the same system with the same CPM, each said PSF reflects a point object positioned at one specific longitudinal distance, respectively, from said array; (c2) storing the results of said separate cross-correlations, each such cross-correlation result relates to an image of another section, respectively, of the object; and (c3) uniting all said cross-correlation results to reconstruct a final image of the object.