Single-pixel fluorescent diffraction tomography

Photon counting for enhanced resolution spatial frequency modulation imaging

Spatial frequency modulation imaging (SPIFI) has previously been demonstrated in multiphoton modalities with resolution enhancement. When signal light levels are low enough, signals consist of discrete pulses: this is a photon-counting regime. By binning photon counts into discrete time bins, SPIFI signals can be built up by incrementing the photon counts over many modulation periods. The result is an increase in the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) over analog SPIFI acquisition, enabling higher fidelity in the greater orders of resolution enhancement that SPIFI can produce.

Single-pixel imaging through non-homogeneous turbid media with adaptive illumination

The presence of scattering media limits the quality of images obtained by optical systems. Single-pixel imaging techniques based on structured illumination are highly tolerant to the presence of scattering between the object and the sensor, but very sensitive when the scattering medium is between the light source and the object. This makes it difficult to develop single-pixel imaging techniques for the case of objects immersed in scattering media. We present what we believe to be a new system for imaging objects through inhomogeneous scattering media in an epi-illumination configuration. It works in an adaptive way by combining diffuse optical imaging (DOI) and single pixel imaging (SPI) techniques in two stages. First, the turbid media is characterized by projecting light patterns with an LED array and applying DOI techniques. Second, the LED array is programmed to project light only through the less scattering areas of the media, while simultaneously using a digital micromirror device (DMD) to project light patterns onto the target using Hadamard basis coding functions. With this adaptive technique, we are able to obtain images of targets through two different scattering media with better quality than using conventional illumination. We also show that the system works with fluorescent targets.

Photon-level single-pixel 3D tomography with masked attention network

Tomography plays an important role in characterizing the three-dimensional structure of samples within specialized scenarios. In the paper, a masked attention network is presented to eliminate interference from different layers of the sample, substantially enhancing the resolution for photon-level single-pixel tomographic imaging. The simulation and experimental results have demonstrated that the axial resolution and lateral resolution of the imaging system can be improved by about 3 and 2 times respectively, with a sampling rate of 3.0 %. The scheme is expected to be seamlessly integrated into various tomography systems, which is conducive to promoting the tomographic imaging for biology, medicine, and materials science.

Cascaded domain multiphoton spatial frequency modulation imaging

Significance

Multiphoton microscopy is a powerful imaging tool for biomedical applications. A variety of techniques and respective benefits exist for multiphoton microscopy, but an enhanced resolution is especially desired. Additionally multiphoton microscopy requires ultrafast pulses for excitation, so optimization of the pulse duration at the sample is critical for strong signals.

Aim

We aim to perform enhanced resolution imaging that is robust to scattering using a structured illumination technique while also providing a rapid and easily repeatable means to optimize group delay dispersion (GDD) compensation through to the sample.

Approach

Spatial frequency modulation imaging (SPIFI) is used in two domains: the spatial domain (SD) and the wavelength domain (WD). The WD-SPIFI system is an in-line tool enabling GDD optimization that considers all material through to the sample. The SD-SPIFI system follows and enables enhanced resolution imaging.

Results

The WD-SPIFI dispersion optimization performance is confirmed with independent pulse characterization, enabling rapid optimization of pulses for imaging with the SD-SPIFI system. The SD-SPIFI system demonstrates enhanced resolution imaging without the use of photon counting enabled by signal to noise improvements due to the WD-SPIFI system.

Conclusions

Implementing SPIFI in-line in two domains enables full-path dispersion compensation optimization through to the sample for enhanced resolution multiphoton microscopy.

Optical single-pixel volumetric imaging by three-dimensional light-field illumination

Three-dimensional single-pixel imaging (3D SPI) has become an attractive imaging modality for both biomedical research and optical sensing. 3D-SPI techniques generally depend on time-of-flight or stereovision principle to extract depth information from backscattered light. However, existing implementations for these two optical schemes are limited to surface mapping of 3D objects at depth resolutions, at best, at the millimeter level. Here, we report 3D light-field illumination single-pixel microscopy (3D-LFI-SPM) that enables volumetric imaging of microscopic objects with a near-diffraction-limit 3D optical resolution. Aimed at 3D space reconstruction, 3D-LFI-SPM optically samples the 3D Fourier spectrum by combining 3D structured light-field illumination with single-element intensity detection. We build a 3D-LFI-SPM prototype that provides an imaging volume of ∼390 × 390 × 3,800 μm3 and achieves 2.7-μm lateral resolution and better than 37-μm axial resolution. Its capability of 3D visualization of label-free optical absorption contrast is demonstrated by imaging single algal cells in vivo. Our approach opens broad perspectives for 3D SPI with potential applications in various fields, such as biomedical functional imaging.

Design and analysis of polygonal mirror-based scan engines for improved spatial frequency modulation imaging

Spatial frequency modulation imaging (SPIFI) is a structured illumination single pixel imaging technique that is most often achieved via a rotating modulation disk. This implementation produces line images with exposure times on the order of tens of milliseconds. Here, we present a new architecture for SPIFI using a polygonal scan mirror with the following advances: (1) reducing SPIFI line image exposure times by 2 orders of magnitude, (2) facet-to-facet measurement and correction for polygonal scan design, and (3) a new anamorphic magnification scheme that improves resolution for long working distance optics.

Fisher information and the Cramér-Rao lower bound in single-pixel localization microscopy with spatiotemporally modulated illumination

Single-pixel imaging, the concept that an image can be captured via a single-pixel detector, is a cost-effective yet powerful technique to reduce data acquisition duration without sacrificing image resolution when properly structured illumination patterns are introduced. Normally, the image reconstruction process is subject to the diffraction limit. Here, we study the possibility of exploiting the information contained in the illumination patterns to enable a form of single-pixel localization microscopy (SPLM) for super-resolution. This concept is inspired by coherent holographic image reconstruction by phase transfer (CHIRPT) microscopy. CHIRPT microscopy is a single-pixel imaging technique that uses structured illumination that is spatiotemporally modulated (STM) so that a unique temporal modulation pattern is imparted to each point within a large illumination volume. The fluorescent light emitted by molecules contains the same temporal modulations as the illumination patterns at the locations of the molecules. By recording a portion of the total emitted fluorescent power, the signal may be numerically processed to form an image. Unique temporal modulation patterns that excite fluorescent probes at each point can also be used to localize individual molecules by matching their particular temporal light emission patterns to the measured temporal signal. This paper evaluates the feasibility of SPLM with STM illuminations used in and inspired by CHIRPT microscopy via the information content its data carry about the emitter location(s). More specifically, we provide the mathematical formalism of Fisher information (FI) and the Cramér-Rao lower bound (CRLB) associated with the location parameters of the emitter(s). The FI and CRLB are then numerically evaluated under different experimental assumptions to assess the effects of experimental parameters on localization precision. Last, we compare the single-pixel CRLB to that from camera-based single-molecule localization microscopy in the localization of a single emitter. We show that SPLM has several distinguishing characteristics that provide certain advantages, such as relatively constant CRLB over a very large illumination volume and improved CRLB for 3D localization due to the information coupling introduced by simultaneous modulations of the transverse axes.