Spectroscopic optical coherence tomography

TLDR

Spectroscopic optical coherence tomography extends conventional OCT to provide cross‑sectional tomographic and spectroscopic imaging. Spectral content of backscattered light is extracted by detecting and processing the interferometric OCT signal, with digital signal processing enabling feature extraction without hardware changes, and an ultrabroadband femtosecond Ti:Al₂O₃ laser providing imaging from 650 to 1000 nm in a simple model and in vivo Xenopus laevis tadpoles. The method measures the full backscattered light spectrum simultaneously in a single measurement and displays multidimensional spectroscopic data using a novel hue‑saturation false‑color mapping.

Abstract

Spectroscopic optical coherence tomography (OCT), an extension of conventional OCT, is demonstrated for performing cross-sectional tomographic and spectroscopic imaging. Information on the spectral content of backscattered light is obtained by detection and processing of the interferometric OCT signal. This method allows the spectrum of backscattered light to be measured over the entire available optical bandwidth simultaneously in a single measurement. Specific spectral features can be extracted by use of digital signal processing without changing the measurement apparatus. An ultrabroadband femtosecond Ti:Al(2)O(3) laser was used to achieve spectroscopic imaging over the wavelength range from 650 to 1000 nm in a simple model as well as in vivo in the Xenopus laevis (African frog) tadpole. Multidimensional spectroscopic data are displayed by use of a novel hue-saturation false-color mapping.