Image quality optimization of line-focused spectral domain optical coherence tomography with subsection dispersion compensation

Yang Jianwen; Huang Jiangjie; He Yi; Shi Guohua

doi:10.12086/oee.2024.240042

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Yang J W, Huang J J, He Y, et al. Image quality optimization of line-focused spectral domain optical coherence tomography with subsection dispersion compensation[J]. Opto-Electron Eng, 2024, 51(6): 240042. doi: 10.12086/oee.2024.240042

Citation:

Yang J W, Huang J J, He Y, et al. Image quality optimization of line-focused spectral domain optical coherence tomography with subsection dispersion compensation[J]. Opto-Electron Eng, 2024, 51(6): 240042. doi: 10.12086/oee.2024.240042

Image quality optimization of line-focused spectral domain optical coherence tomography with subsection dispersion compensation

1.
Suzhou Institute of Biomedical Engineering and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215163, China
2.
College of Biomedical Engineering (Suzhou) , Department of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, China

Fund Project: Project supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (62075235), National Key Research and Development Program of China (2021YFF0700700), Youth Innovation Promotion Association, CAS (2019320), and Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (XDA16021304)

More Information

^*Corresponding author: shigh@sibet.ac.cn

Received Date 28 February 2024

Revised Date 04 May 2024

Accepted Date 07 May 2024

Published Date 25 June 2024

Abstract

Abstract

In this study, a line-focused spectral domain optical coherence tomography (LF-SD-OCT) system for imaging biological samples was built, and a data processing algorithm to improve the imaging quality was proposed to solve most of the problems of axial broadening and sensitivity attenuation caused by systematic errors. In particular, a segmented dispersion compensation method is proposed to compensate the second- and third-order dispersion phases in the imaging depth. The effectiveness and reliability of this method are verified by the imaging experiments of plane mirrors and scotch tape samples. Finally, it is proved that this method can improve the full-depth axial resolution and sensitivity without affecting the image processing speed. The final system can achieve the axial resolution of 6.76 μm and an equivalent A-scan rate of 57.2 kHz, and clearly image the tape sample within 2 mm depth and the apple sample within 0.3 mm depth. In the future, it is expected to widely realize the biological imaging applications of line-focused spectral domain optical coherence tomography.
- line-focused spectral domain OCT /
- dispersion compensation /
- image quality /
- biological sample imaging

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References

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Overview

Overview

LF-SD-OCT was first proposed by Zuluaga and Kortum et al in 1999 and has since made significant advances in imaging speed and resolution. Compared with mainstream SD-OCT, LF-SD-OCT has advantages in system cost, imaging speed, and biosecurity, so it has a very good application prospect in areas with high imaging speed and security requirements, such as in vivo imaging. However, as the depth of LF-SD-OCT increases, the image quality deteriorates rapidly. At present, LF-SD-OCT has not been successfully applied in the biomedical field in China, and there are only a few successful cases in the international community.

In this study, we independently designed and built a line-focused spectral domain optical coherence tomography (LF-SD-OCT) system for imaging biological samples, and proposed data processing algorithms to improve imaging quality. We found that the dispersion parameters of different depth positions are quite different, and the unified dispersion compensation coefficient will lead to undercompensation or overcompensation in some regions. First, the curve of the dispersion compensation coefficient with depth is obtained by system calibration. Then, the original data is divided into four segments in the depth direction, and the dispersion compensation coefficient corresponding to the center position of each segment is used to compensate the second- and third-order dispersion phase in the segment. Subsequently, the segments are combined. The effectiveness and reliability of the proposed method are verified by using a flat mirror and scotch tape sample imaging. Finally, it is proved that the proposed method can improve the full-depth axial resolution and sensitivity while taking into account the image processing speed. After iterative wavelength distribution calibration, piecewise dispersion compensation, and deconvolution denoising, most of the axial broadening and sensitivity attenuation problems caused by systematic errors have been solved. The final system can achieve the axial resolution of 6.76 μm (theoretical value is 6.2 μm) and an equivalent A-scan rate of 57.2 kHz, and can image the tape sample within 2 mm depth and the apple sample within 0.3 mm depth.

This study has proved that line-focused spectral OCT has great advantages in imaging speed and development cost. In the future, further increase of light source power and appropriate improvement of the optical path can image human samples with weaker backscattered light, and it is expected that line-focused spectral OCT can be successfully applied to domestic biomedical imaging fields.