APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR CROSS AXIS PARALLEL SPECTROSCOPY

• US 20090273777A1
• Filed: 04/30/2008
• Published: 11/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The General Hospital Corporation (Mass General Brigham, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: The General Hospital Corporation (Mass General Brigham, Inc.)
• Inventors: Scarcelli, Giuliano, Yun, Seok-Hyun
• Granted Patent: US 7,898,656 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 356/300
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/02 Details
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/0208 using focussing or collimating elements, e.g. lenses or mirrors; performing aberration correction
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/0229 using masks, aperture plates, spatial light modulators or spatial filters, e.g. reflective filters
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/14 using refracting elements, e.g. prisms G01J3/18, G01J3/26 take precedence prisms per se G02B5/04
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/18 using diffraction elements, e.g. grating gratings per se G02B
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/26 using multiple reflection, e.g. Fabry-Perot interferometer, variable interference filters

Abstract

An exemplary embodiment of apparatus and method to measure and filter the spectrum of electro-magnetic radiation using multiple dispersive elements, such as diffraction gratings or VIPA etalons, concatenated in a cross-axis orthogonal arrangement can be provided. For example, it is possible to receive at least one first electro-magnetic radiation and generate at least one second electro-magnetic radiation using at least one first spectral separating arrangement. A first spectrum of the second electro-magnetic radiation can be dispersed along at least one first dispersive axis with respect to a propagation direction of the second electro-magnetic radiation. In addition, it is possible to, using at least one second arrangement, receive the second electro-magnetic radiation and produce at least one third electromagnetic radiation having a second spectrum dispersed along at least one second dispersive axis with respect to a propagation direction of the third electromagnetic radiation. The orientations of the respective first and second dispersive axes can be different from one another. The first and/or second dispersive arrangements can be VIPA etalon arrangements.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

at least one first spectral separating arrangement which is structured to receive at least one first electro-magnetic radiation and generate at least one second electro-magnetic radiation, wherein a first spectrum of the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation is dispersed along at least one first dispersive axis with respect to a propagation direction of the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation; and

at least one second arrangement which is configured to receive the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation and produce at least one third electromagnetic radiation having a second spectrum dispersed along at least one second dispersive axis with respect to a propagation direction of the at least one third electromagnetic radiation, wherein orientations of the respective first and second dispersive axes are different from one another.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising at least one third spectral separating arrangement which is structured to receive at least one third electro-magnetic radiation and generate at least one fourth electro-magnetic radiation, wherein a third spectrum of the at least one fourth electro-magnetic radiation is dispersed along at least one third dispersive axis with respect to a propagation direction of the at least one fourth electro-magnetic radiation, wherein orientations of the respective second and third dispersive axes are different from one another.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the orientations of the respective first and third dispersive axes are different from one another.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an angle between the first and second dispersive axes is approximately 90 degrees.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one second arrangement is an optical arrangement which rotates an orientation of the spectrum of the at least one second electromagnetic radiation.

6. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the optical arrangement includes at least one of a Dove-type prism, an Abbe prism, a Pechan prism or a plurality of rotating mirrors.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one first spectral separating arrangement includes at least one a grating, a prism or a VIPA etalon.

8. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the at least one third spectral separating arrangement includes at least one a grating, a prism or a VIPA etalon.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising at least one detector-array arrangement configured to detect at least one portion of the second spectrum.

10. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising at least one detector-array arrangement configured to detect at least one portion of the third spectrum.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the at least one detector-array arrangement include a linear CCD array.

12. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a spatial modification arrangement which is configured to modify at least one property of at least one portion of at least one of the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation or the at least one third electro-magnetic radiation.

13. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a spatial modification arrangement which is configured to modify at least one property of at least one portion of at least one of the second, third or fourth electro-magnetic radiation.

14. The apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising at least one detector-array arrangement configured to receive further radiation effected by the modified portion.

15. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the spatial modification arrangement includes at least one slit.

16. An apparatus comprising:

a first VIPA etalon arrangement which is structured to receive at least one first electro-magnetic radiation and generate at least one second electro-magnetic radiation, wherein a first spectrum of the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation is dispersed along at least one first dispersive axis with respect to a propagation direction of the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation; and

a second VIPA etalon arrangement which is structured to receive at least one third electro-magnetic radiation associated with the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation and generate at least one fourth electro-magnetic radiation, wherein a second spectrum of the at least one fourth electro-magnetic radiation is dispersed along at least one second dispersive axis with respect to a propagation direction of the at least one fourth electro-magnetic radiation, and wherein the orientations of the first and second dispersive axes are different from one another.

17. The apparatus according to claim 16, further comprising at least one third optical arrangement which receives the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation and generates the at least one third electro-magnetic radiation.

18. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the at least one third optical arrangement includes at least one of a lens arrangement, at least one slit or a Dove prism.

19. The apparatus according to claim 16, further comprising at least one detector-array arrangement configured to detect at least one portion of the second spectrum.

20. The apparatus according to claim 16, further comprising at least one dispersive arrangement which is configured to receive at least one fifth electromagnetic radiation associated with the at least one fourth electromagnetic radiation, and generate a third spectrum.

21. A method for measuring an electro-magnetic radiation, comprising:

spatially separating the electro-magnetic radiation;

detecting the spatially separated electro-magnetic radiation;

simultaneously measuring at least two components of the spectrum of the spatially separated electro-magnetic radiation each time at different amplitudes of the electro-magnetic radiation to produce output information; and

generating a resultant spectrum signal associated with electro-magnetic radiation based on the output information.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein a ratio between maximum and minimum values measured for the resultant spectrum signal is greater than about 50 dB.

23. A method comprising:

receiving at least one first electro-magnetic radiation and generate at least one second electro-magnetic radiation using a first VIPA etalon arrangement, wherein a first spectrum of the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation is dispersed along at least one first dispersive axis with respect to a propagation direction of the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation;

receiving at least one third electro-magnetic radiation associated with the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation using a second VIPA etalon arrangement; and

generating at least one fourth electro-magnetic radiation using the second VIPA etalon arrangement, wherein a second spectrum of the at least one fourth electro-magnetic radiation is dispersed along at least one second dispersive axis with respect to a propagation direction of the at least one fourth electro-magnetic radiation, and wherein the orientations of the first and second dispersive axes are different from one another.

24. An apparatus comprising:

a first dispersive arrangement which is structured to receive at least one first electro-magnetic radiation and generate at least one second electro-magnetic radiation, wherein a first spectrum of the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation is dispersed along at least one first dispersive axis with respect to a propagation direction of the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation, wherein the first dispersive arrangement includes a flat planar grating; and

a second dispersive arrangement which is structured to receive at least one third electro-magnetic radiation associated with the at least one second electro-magnetic radiation and generate at least one fourth electro-magnetic radiation, wherein a second spectrum of the at least one fourth electro-magnetic radiation is dispersed along at least one second dispersive axis with respect to a propagation direction of the at least one fourth electro-magnetic radiation, and wherein the angle between the first and second dispersive axes is greater than about 15 degrees.

25. The apparatus according to claim 24, wherein the second dispersive arrangement includes a flat planar grating.