Method and apparatus for pseudo-projection formation for optical tomography
First Claim
1. A method for multi-dimensional imaging of a specimen region, comprising the steps of:
- a) illuminating the specimen region;
b) moving an optical element to scan a focal plane through the thickness of the specimen region at a fixed viewpoint to produce a pseudo-projection image of the specimen onto a two-dimensional array of detectors during a single exposure of the two-dimensional array of detectors, wherein the pseudo-projection image thus formed includes an integration of a range of focal plane images; and
c) repeating steps a) and b) for two or more viewpoints to produce a set of pseudo-projection images.
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Abstract
A system for optical imaging of a thick specimen that permits rapid acquisition of data necessary for tomographic reconstruction of the three-dimensional (3D) image. One method involves the scanning of the focal plane of an imaging system and integrating the range of focal planes onto a detector. The focal plane of an optical imaging system is scanned along the axis perpendicular to said plane through the thickness of a specimen during a single detector exposure. Secondly, methods for reducing light scatter when using illumination point sources are presented. Both approaches yield shadowgrams. This process is repeated from multiple perspectives, either in series using a single illumination/detection subsystem, or in parallel using several illumination/detection subsystems. A set of pseudo-projections is generated, which are input to a three dimensional tomographic image reconstruction algorithm.
197 Citations
24 Claims
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1. A method for multi-dimensional imaging of a specimen region, comprising the steps of:
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a) illuminating the specimen region; b) moving an optical element to scan a focal plane through the thickness of the specimen region at a fixed viewpoint to produce a pseudo-projection image of the specimen onto a two-dimensional array of detectors during a single exposure of the two-dimensional array of detectors, wherein the pseudo-projection image thus formed includes an integration of a range of focal plane images; and c) repeating steps a) and b) for two or more viewpoints to produce a set of pseudo-projection images. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23)
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21. A method for multi-dimensional imaging of a specimen region, comprising the steps of:
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a) arranging at least two sets of illumination and image capturing systems in an arc about a specimen region; b) operating each set of illumination and image capturing systems to capture images from a continuum of parallel focal planes, where each of the continuum of parallel focal planes is within the specimen region and is substantially perpendicular to the incident light rays from one of said illumination and image capturing systems, such that a set of pseudo-projection images are simultaneously compiled from each of said illumination and image capturing systems, wherein each of the set of pseudo-projection images is produced during a single exposure of one of the illumination and image capturing systems and wherein each of the set of pseudo-projection images includes an integration of a range of focal plane images; and c) wherein the arc at least partially encircles the specimen region so that the set of pseudo-projection images is suitable for use in tomographic image reconstruction.
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24. A method for multi-dimensional imaging of a specimen region, comprising:
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a) illuminating the specimen region; b) continuously sampling along an optical axis at a fixed viewpoint through the thickness of the specimen region to produce a pseudo-projection image of the specimen onto a two-dimensional array of detectors during a single exposure of the two-dimensional array of detectors, wherein the pseudo-projection image thus formed includes an integration of a range of focal plane images; and c) repeating steps a) and b for two or more viewpoints to produce a set of pseudo-projection images.
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Specification