Method for measuring the absorption coefficient and the reduced scattering coefficient of a multiple scattering medium

• US 20050162660A1
• Filed: 01/23/2004
• Published: 07/28/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Chien Chou
• Original Assignee: Chien Chou
• Inventors: Wu, Jheng-Syong, Chou, Chien, Chan, Yi-Shin
• Granted Patent: US 7,230,716 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 356/484
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14551 for measuring blood gases
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/21 Polarisation-affecting properties G01N21/19 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/4795 spatially resolved investigating of object in scattering medium in vivo A61B

Abstract

In a method for measuring absorption and reduced scattering coefficients of a multiple scattering medium, a coherent light beam is outputted. The coherent light beam includes linear polarized P and S wave components having mutually orthogonal polarizations and frequencies ω_P and ω_S, respectively. Then, the coherent light beam is split into a signal beam and a reference beam, which include the P wave and S wave components, respectively. The signal beam is subsequently projected into the medium. Optical interference signals of the reference beam and the signal beam penetrating the medium are respectively detected and converted into heterodyne interference electrical signals. Thereafter, the two heterodyne interference electrical signals are compared to obtain amplitude attenuation and phase delay of the signal beam penetrating the medium, from which the absorption and reduced scattering coefficients of the medium at a position where the signal beam penetrated the medium are inferred.

Claims

1. A method for measuring an absorption coefficient and a reduced scattering coefficient of a multiple scattering medium, comprising the steps of:

outputting a coherent light beam, the coherent light beam including linear polarized P and S wave components having mutually orthogonal polarizations and frequencies ω

_P and ω

_S, respectively;

splitting the coherent light beam into a signal beam and a reference beam, the signal beam and the reference beam including the P wave and S wave components, respectively;

projecting the signal beam into the multiple scattering medium;

detecting and converting an optical interference signal of the reference beam and an optical interference signal of the signal beam that penetrates the multiple scattering medium, respectively, into heterodyne interference electrical signals;

comparing the two heterodyne interference electrical signals to obtain amplitude attenuation and phase delay of the signal beam that penetrated the multiple scattering medium; and

inferring the reduced scattering coefficient and the absorption coefficient of the multiple scattering medium at a position where the multiple scattering medium is penetrated with reference to the amplitude attenuation and phase delay thus obtained.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the coherent light beam is emitted from a linear polarized frequency stabilized two-frequency laser light source.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the coherent light beam is emitted from a circular polarized frequency stabilized two-frequency laser light source.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising a step of concentrating the signal beam to a signal optical fiber prior to projection of the signal beam into the multiple scattering medium;

the signal beam that penetrated the multiple scattering medium being detected by means of a detector optical fiber.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising steps of amplifying and filtering after detecting the optical interference signal of the signal beam that penetrated the multiple scattering medium for conversion into the heterodyne interference electrical signal.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the splitting step includes a sub-step of generating a photon pair, in which the coherent light beam is passed through a polarizer to become a correlated parallel linear polarized photon pair and a sub-step of beam separation, in which a beam splitter splits the photon pair thus generated into the reference beam and the signal beam.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising a step of band-pass filtering prior to the step of comparing the heterodyne interference electrical signals, in which a frequency difference of ω

_p and ω

_s serves as a center frequency for band-pass filtering of the heterodyne interference electrical signal converted from the signal beam that penetrated the multiple scattering medium.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of detecting the optical interference signal of the signal beam that penetrated the multiple scattering medium includes a sub-step of splitting the optical interference signal of the signal beam that penetrated the multiple scattering medium into two mutually orthogonal polarization directions for subsequent detection and conversion into the heterodyne interference electrical signals, and a sub-step of subsequently inputting the heterodyne interference electrical signals into a differential amplifier.

9. A method of imaging a multiple scattering medium, comprising the steps of:

outputting a coherent light beam, the coherent light beam including linear polarized P and S wave components having mutually orthogonal polarizations and different frequencies;

splitting the coherent light beam into a signal beam and a reference beam, the signal beam and the reference beam including the P wave and S wave components, respectively;

projecting the signal beam into the multiple scattering medium;

detecting an optical interference signal of the reference beam and an optical interference signal of the signal beam that penetrated the multiple scattering medium for conversion into heterodyne interference electrical signals;

comparing the two heterodyne interference electrical signals to obtain amplitude attenuation and phase delay of the signal beam that penetrated the multiple scattering medium;

inferring a reduced scattering coefficient and an absorption coefficient of the multiple scattering medium at a penetration position;

recording the reduced scattering coefficient, the absorption coefficient and information of the penetration position;

moving the position of incidence of the signal beam and detecting the position of the signal beam that penetrated the multiple scattering medium, and repeating the foregoing steps for a predetermined number of times; and

according to the positions of penetration, reconstructing distribution of the reduced scattering coefficients and absorption coefficients of the positions.