Spectroscopic polarization-sensitive full-field optical coherence tomography

Methods and applications of full-field optical coherence tomography: a review

SIGNIFICANCE

Full-field optical coherence tomography (FF-OCT) enables en face views of scattering samples at a given depth with subcellular resolution, similar to biopsy without the need of sample slicing or other complex preparation. This noninvasive, high-resolution, three-dimensional (3D) imaging method has the potential to become a powerful tool in biomedical research, clinical applications, and other microscopic detection.

AIM

Our review provides an overview of the disruptive innovations and key technologies to further improve FF-OCT performance, promoting FF-OCT technology in biomedical and other application scenarios.

APPROACH

A comprehensive review of state-of-the-art accomplishments in OCT has been performed. Methods to improve performance of FF-OCT systems are reviewed, including advanced phase-shift approaches for imaging speed improvement, methods of denoising, artifact reduction, and aberration correction for imaging quality optimization, innovations for imaging flux expansion (field-of-view enlargement and imaging-depth-limit extension), new implementations for multimodality systems, and deep learning enhanced FF-OCT for information mining, etc. Finally, we summarize the application status and prospects of FF-OCT in the fields of biomedicine, materials science, security, and identification.

RESULTS

The most worth-expecting FF-OCT innovations include combining the technique of spatial modulation of optical field and computational optical imaging technology to obtain greater penetration depth, as well as exploiting endogenous contrast for functional imaging, e.g., dynamic FF-OCT, which enables noninvasive visualization of tissue dynamic properties or intracellular motility. Different dynamic imaging algorithms are compared using the same OCT data of the colorectal cancer organoid, which helps to understand the disadvantages and advantages of each. In addition, deep learning enhanced FF-OCT provides more valuable characteristic information, which is of great significance for auxiliary diagnosis and organoid detection.

CONCLUSIONS

FF-OCT has not been completely exploited and has substantial growth potential. By elaborating the key technologies, performance optimization methods, and application status of FF-OCT, we expect to accelerate the development of FF-OCT in both academic and industry fields. This renewed perspective on FF-OCT may also serve as a road map for future development of invasive 3D super-resolution imaging techniques to solve the problems of microscopic visualization detection.

Depth-dependent in vivo human skin backscattering spectra extraction from full-field optical coherence tomography

With homemade active crystalline fibers, we generated bright and broadband light sources for full-field optical coherence tomography, offering deep penetration into skin tissues with cellular resolution at a high frame rate. Extraction of backscattered spectra from the tissue has potential applications in biomedicine. The hysteresis nonlinearity of the piezoelectric transducer actuating the Mirau interferometer has been greatly reduced by a feedforward compensation approach. The linearized hysteresis response enables us to extract depth-dependent spectra accurately. To validate, the complex dispersion of a fused silica plate was characterized with 2% error. Further validation on an in vitro setting, the backscattered spectra from indocyanine green pigment and nonpigmented microspheres were obtained and verified. For in vivo skin measurement, the backscattered spectra show depth-dependent spectral shift and bandwidth variation due to the complex skin anatomy and pigment absorption. Such a high-speed spectra acquisition of in vivo deep tissue backscattering could lead to disease diagnosis in clinical settings.

Real-time Jones phase microscopy for studying transparent and birefringent specimens

Tissue birefringence is an intrinsic marker of potential value for cancer diagnosis. Traditionally, birefringence properties have been studied by using intensity-based formalisms, through the Mueller matrix algebra. On the other hand, the Jones matrix description allows for a direct assessment of the sample's anisotropic response. However, because Jones algebra is based on complex fields, requiring measurements of both phase and amplitude, it is less commonly used. Here we propose a real-time imaging method for measuring Jones matrices by quantitative phase imaging. We combine a broadband phase imaging system with a polarization-sensitive detector to obtain Jones matrices at each point in a megapixel scale image, with near video rate capture speeds. To validate the utility of our approach, we measured standard targets, partially birefringent samples, dynamic specimens, and thinly sliced histopathological tissue.

Automated full-field polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography diagnostic systems for breast cancer

Intraoperative delineation of breast cancer is a major challenge. An effective breast tissue screening technique may reduce the risk of re-excision during surgery by specifically identifying positive margins. In this study, a high-resolution automated full-field polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography (FF-PS-OCT) system was developed to classify healthy and malignant human breast tissue from quantitative phase retardation information of the tissues in ex vivo. Twelve breast tissue samples [four healthy, eight malignant (cancerous)] were imaged with the FF-PS-OCT system and the different phase features were extracted from the acquired OCT images (106), based on the differences in the optical signatures of the healthy and malignant tissues. A linear support vector model classifier was trained using 75 images, with a sensitivity of 92.10% and specificity of 89.18% was achieved. Thirty-one images were used to test the model, with a sensitivity of 90.90% and specificity of 85.0% achieved.

Single-shot wavelength-independent phase-shifting method for full-field optical coherence tomography

One limitation of a piezoelectric translator-based phase-shifting method in full-field optical coherence tomography (FF-OCT) is that there exist interference residuals because a light source with broadband is used. In this work, an achromatic phase-shifting method was proposed in which a linear polarizer and a quarter-wave plate were employed to generate the circularly polarized light in the reference arm of a basic Linnik interferometer. The light field reflected from the reference arm is supposed with the unpolarized light backscattered from the sample when the path difference is within the coherence length of the light source. A first phase difference of π/2 can be generated on the propagation of superposed light beams through the polarized beam splitter. An additional phase difference of π/2 can be obtained by the proposed numerical method, thus producing the similar effects as the four-frame phase-shifting way. An en face tomographic image can be obtained with a single-shot in this new FF-OCT system. The axial and lateral resolutions of the system are around 1.4 μm and 0.8 μm, respectively. The system offers a dynamic range of ∼56  dB and an imaging rate of 30 fps. Tomographic images of Intel microchip, onion cells, and microcracks in the glass were displayed with clear substructures. This article aims at producing fringe-free OCT images in a single shot.

Emerging optical nanoscopy techniques

To face the challenges of modern health care, new imaging techniques with subcellular resolution or detection over wide fields are required. Far field optical nanoscopy presents many new solutions, providing high resolution or detection at high speed. We present a new classification scheme to help appreciate the growing number of optical nanoscopy techniques. We underline an important distinction between superresolution techniques that provide improved resolving power and nanodetection techniques for characterizing unresolved nanostructures. Some of the emerging techniques within these two categories are highlighted with applications in biophysics and medicine. Recent techniques employing wider angle imaging by digital holography and scattering lens microscopy allow superresolution to be achieved for subcellular and even in vivo, imaging without labeling. Nanodetection techniques are divided into four subcategories using contrast, phase, deconvolution, and nanomarkers. Contrast enhancement is illustrated by means of a polarized light-based technique and with strobed phase-contrast microscopy to reveal nanostructures. Very high sensitivity phase measurement using interference microscopy is shown to provide nanometric surface roughness measurement or to reveal internal nanometric structures. Finally, the use of nanomarkers is illustrated with stochastic fluorescence microscopy for mapping intracellular structures. We also present some of the future perspectives of optical nanoscopy.

Fourier spectrum analysis of full-field optical coherence tomography for tissue imaging

We propose a model of the full-field optical coherence tomography (FFOCT) technique for tissue imaging, in which the fractal model of the spatial correlation function of the refractive index of tissue is employed to approximate tissue structure. The results may be helpful for correctly interpreting en face tomographic images obtained with FFOCT.

Stokes vector measurement based on snapshot polarization-sensitive spectral interferometry

This paper describes a Stokes vector measurement method based on a snapshot polarization-sensitive spectral interferometry. We measure perpendicular linearly polarized complex wave information of an anisotropic object in the spectral domain from which an accurate Stokes vector can be extracted. The proposed Stokes vector measurement method is robust to the object plane 3-D pose variation and external noise, and it provides a reliable snapshot solution in numerous spectral polarization-related applications.