The United States of America As Represented by the Department of Health

Bruker Medizintechnik Gmbh

Alexander Knuttel

Jay R Knutson

Joseph M Schmitt

In an optical imaging apparatus for the investigation of strongly scattering media, in particular biological tissue samples, with at least one-dimensional position resolution in a depth direction of a measuring object, with a radiation source for radiating low coherence light, with a device for splitting the low coherence light into two partial beams, of which one is guided in an object arm to the measured object and the other in a reference arm to a reflecting element, and with a detector configuration to which the partial beams reflected from the reflecting element in the reference arm and from the measured object in the object arm can be guided, brought into interference with another, and detected, the detector configuration exhibits a spatial extent transverse to the incident direction of both partial beams on the detector configuration along which light signals can be recorded in a position sensitive and simultaneous fashion and both partial beams in the object arm and in the reference arm are so guided that a spatial interference pattern occurs along the lateral extent of the detector configuration, whereby the reflecting element in the reference arm exhibits only static parts which, in any event, are non-mechanically moving. In this fashion a simple and economical as well as especially mechanically stable reflectometer apparatus is achieved with which a rapid sequence of image recordings is possible.

Optical interferometer employing mutually coherent light source and an

An apparatus and method for using frequency modulated diffusive photon-density waves propagating through a turbid medium such as tissue for detecting optical properties of objects and for imaging objects within the turbid medium. Frequency modulation enables real time differential measurement of the interaction of different colors with the object when the different colors are chosen such that they react the same with the medium but differently with the object. The method greatly simplifies optical imaging and increases the amount of information which may be obtained about the object.

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Rockville, MD, United States of America

Alexander Knuttel