834 research outputs found

    The development of liquid crystal lasers for application in fluorescence microscopy

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    Lasers can be found in many areas of optical medical imaging and their properties have enabled the rapid advancement of many imaging techniques and modalities. Their narrow linewidth, relative brightness and coherence are advantageous in obtaining high quality images of biological samples. This is particularly beneficial in fluorescence microscopy. However, commercial imaging systems depend on the combination of multiple independent laser sources or use tuneable sources, both of which are expensive and have large footprints. This thesis demonstrates the use of liquid crystal (LC) laser technology, a compact and portable alternative, as an exciting candidate to provide a tailorable light source for fluorescence microscopy. Firstly, to improve the laser performance parameters such that high power and high specification lasers could be realised; device fabrication improvements were presented. Studies exploring the effect of alignment layer rubbing depth and the device cell gap spacing on laser performance were conducted. The results were the first of their kind and produced advances in fabrication that were critical to repeatedly realising stable, single-mode LC laser outputs with sufficient power to conduct microscopy. These investigations also aided with the realisation of laser diode pumping of LC lasers. Secondly, the identification of optimum dye concentrations for single and multi-dye systems were used to optimise the LC laser mixtures for optimal performance. These investigations resulted in novel results relating to the gain media in LC laser systems. Collectively, these advancements yielded lasers of extremely low threshold, comparable to the lowest reported thresholds in the literature. A portable LC laser system was integrated into a microscope and used to perform fluorescence microscopy. Successful two-colour imaging and multi-wavelength switching ability of LC lasers were exhibited for the first time. The wavelength selectivity of LC lasers was shown to allow lower incident average powers to be used for comparable image quality. Lastly, wavelength selectivity enabled the LC laser fluorescence microscope to achieve high enough sensitivity to conduct quantitative fluorescence measurements. The development of LC lasers and their suitability to fluorescence microscopy demonstrated in this thesis is hoped to push towards the realisation of commercialisation and application for the technology

    BDS GNSS for Earth Observation

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    For millennia, human communities have wondered about the possibility of observing phenomena in their surroundings, and in particular those affecting the Earth on which they live. More generally, it can be conceptually defined as Earth observation (EO) and is the collection of information about the biological, chemical and physical systems of planet Earth. It can be undertaken through sensors in direct contact with the ground or airborne platforms (such as weather balloons and stations) or remote-sensing technologies. However, the definition of EO has only become significant in the last 50 years, since it has been possible to send artificial satellites out of Earth’s orbit. Referring strictly to civil applications, satellites of this type were initially designed to provide satellite images; later, their purpose expanded to include the study of information on land characteristics, growing vegetation, crops, and environmental pollution. The data collected are used for several purposes, including the identification of natural resources and the production of accurate cartography. Satellite observations can cover the land, the atmosphere, and the oceans. Remote-sensing satellites may be equipped with passive instrumentation such as infrared or cameras for imaging the visible or active instrumentation such as radar. Generally, such satellites are non-geostationary satellites, i.e., they move at a certain speed along orbits inclined with respect to the Earth’s equatorial plane, often in polar orbit, at low or medium altitude, Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), thus covering the entire Earth’s surface in a certain scan time (properly called ’temporal resolution’), i.e., in a certain number of orbits around the Earth. The first remote-sensing satellites were the American NASA/USGS Landsat Program; subsequently, the European: ENVISAT (ENVironmental SATellite), ERS (European Remote-Sensing satellite), RapidEye, the French SPOT (Satellite Pour l’Observation de laTerre), and the Canadian RADARSAT satellites were launched. The IKONOS, QuickBird, and GeoEye-1 satellites were dedicated to cartography. The WorldView-1 and WorldView-2 satellites and the COSMO-SkyMed system are more recent. The latest generation are the low payloads called Small Satellites, e.g., the Chinese BuFeng-1 and Fengyun-3 series. Also, Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSSs) have captured the attention of researchers worldwide for a multitude of Earth monitoring and exploration applications. On the other hand, over the past 40 years, GNSSs have become an essential part of many human activities. As is widely noted, there are currently four fully operational GNSSs; two of these were developed for military purposes (American NAVstar GPS and Russian GLONASS), whilst two others were developed for civil purposes such as the Chinese BeiDou satellite navigation system (BDS) and the European Galileo. In addition, many other regional GNSSs, such as the South Korean Regional Positioning System (KPS), the Japanese quasi-zenital satellite system (QZSS), and the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS/NavIC), will become available in the next few years, which will have enormous potential for scientific applications and geomatics professionals. In addition to their traditional role of providing global positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) information, GNSS navigation signals are now being used in new and innovative ways. Across the globe, new fields of scientific study are opening up to examine how signals can provide information about the characteristics of the atmosphere and even the surfaces from which they are reflected before being collected by a receiver. EO researchers monitor global environmental systems using in situ and remote monitoring tools. Their findings provide tools to support decision makers in various areas of interest, from security to the natural environment. GNSS signals are considered an important new source of information because they are a free, real-time, and globally available resource for the EO community

    Microscopy of spin hydrodynamics and cooperative light scattering in atomic Hubbard systems

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    Wechselwirkungen zwischen quantenmechanischen Teilchen können zu kollektiven Phänomenen führen, deren Eigenschaften sich vom Verhalten einzelner Teilchen stark unterscheiden. Während solche Quanteneffekte im Allgemeinen schwierig zu beobachten sind, haben sich ultrakalte, in optischen Gittern gefangene atomare Gase als vielseitige experimentelle Plattform zur Erforschung der Quantenvielteilchenphysik erwiesen. In dieser Arbeit setzten wir ein Gitterplatz- und Einzelatom-aufgelöstes Quantengasmikroskop für bosonische Rb-87 Atome ein, um Vielteilchensysteme im und außerhalb des Gleichgewichts zu untersuchen. Zunächst betrachteten wir den quantenmechanischen Phasenübergang zwischen dem suprafluiden und dem Mott-isolierenden Zustand im Bose-Hubbard-Modell, das nativ durch kalte Atome in optischen Gittern realisiert wird, und zeigten, dass sich die Brane-Parität eignet, um nichtlokale Ordnung im konventionell als ungeordnet erachteten zweidimensionalen Mott-Isolator zu identifizieren. Mithilfe eines mikroskopischen Ansatzes zur Realisierung einstellbarer Gittergeometrien und programmierbarer Einheitszellen implementierten wir Quadrats-, Dreiecks-, Kagome- und Lieb-Gitter und beobachteten die Skalierung des Phasenübergangspunkts mit der mittleren Koordinationszahl des Gitters. In einem eindimensionalen Gitter untersuchten wir zudem den Hochtemperatur-Spintransport im Heisenberg-Modell, das durch Superaustausch in der Mott-isolierenden Phase eines zwei-Spezies Bose-Hubbard-Modells realisiert wurde. Durch Betrachten der Relaxationsdynamik eines als Domänenwand präparierten Anfangszustandes fanden wir eine superdiffusive Raum-Zeit-Skalierung mit einem anomalen dynamischen Exponenten von 3/2. Anschließend untersuchten wir die theoretisch vorhergesagten mikroskopischen Voraussetzungen für Superdiffusion, indem wir reguläre Diffusion im nicht-integrablen, zweidimensionalen Heisenberg-Modell und ballistischen Transport für SU(2)-Symmetrie-gebrochene magnetisierte Anfangszustände nachwiesen. Weiterhin maßen wir die Zählstatistik der durch die Domänenwand transportierten Spins; die sich daraus ergebende schiefe Verteilung deutete auf einen nichtlinearen zugrundeliegenden Transportprozess hin, der an die dynamische Kardar-Parisi-Zhang Universalitätsklasse erinnert. Mittels Mott-Isolatoren im Limit tiefer Gitter konnten wir darüber hinaus die durch Photonen vermittelten Wechselwirkungen in einem Spinsystem untersuchen, das aus zwei über einen geschlossenen optischen Übergang gekoppelten Zuständen besteht. Durch spektroskopische Untersuchung der Reflexion und Transmission konnten wir die direkte Anregung einer subradianten Eigenmode und kohärente Spiegelung beobachten, was auf die Realisierung einer effizienten, im freien Raum operierenden, paraxialen Licht-Materie-Schnittstelle hindeutet.The interplay of quantum particles can give rise to collective phenomena whose characteristics are distinct from the behavior of individual particles. While quantum effects are generally challenging to observe, ultracold atomic gases trapped in optical lattices have emerged as a versatile experimental platform to study quantum many-body physics. In this thesis, we employed a site– and single-atom–resolved quantum gas microscope of bosonic Rb-87 atoms to explore many-body systems in and out of equilibrium. We first considered the ground-state quantum phase transition between the superfluid and Mott-insulating state in the Bose–Hubbard model, natively realized by cold atoms in optical lattices, for which we found brane parity to be suitable for detecting nonlocal order in the conventionally unordered two-dimensional Mott insulator. Using a microscopic approach to realizing tunable lattice geometries and programmable unit cells, we implemented square, triangular, kagome and Lieb lattices, and observed the mean-field scaling of the phase transition point with average coordination number. In a one-dimensional lattice, we furthermore studied high-temperature spin transport in the Heisenberg model, realized by superexchange in the Mott-insulating phase of a two-species Bose–Hubbard model. By tracking the relaxation dynamics of an initial domain-wall state, we found superdiffusive space–time scaling with an anomalous dynamical exponent of 3/2. We then probed the predicted microscopic requirements for superdiffusion, verifying regular diffusion for the integrability-broken two-dimensional Heisenberg model and ballistic transport for SU(2)-symmetry–broken net magnetized initial states. Subsequently, we measured the full counting statistics of spins transported across the domain wall; the resulting skewed distribution implied a nonlinear underlying transport process, reminiscent of the Kardar–Parisi–Zhang dynamical universality class. Moving to Mott insulators in the deep-lattice limit, we could moreover study photon-mediated interactions on a subwavelength-spaced, array-ordered spin system consisting of states coupled by a closed optical transition. By spectroscopically probing the reflectance and transmittance, we demonstrated the direct excitation of a subradiant eigenmode and observed specular reflection, indicating the realization of an efficient free-space paraxial light–matter interface

    Hemodynamic Quantifications By Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound:From In-Vitro Modelling To Clinical Validation

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    Precision spectroscopy of the 2S-6P transition in atomic deuterium

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    Die Quantenelektrodynamik (QED) bildet die Grundlage aller anderen Quantenfeldtheorien, auf denen das Standardmodell der Teilchenphysik aufgebaut ist. Derzeit ist klar, dass unser fundamentales Naturverständnis unvollständig ist, sodass erwartet wird, dass das Standardmodell um neue Teilchen oder Wechselwirkungen verändert oder erweitert werden muss. Eine Möglichkeit, diese Grenzen der Grundlagenphysik zu erforschen, ist die Durchführung von Präzisionsmessungen. Diese Arbeit untersucht die Präzisionslaserspektroskopie von Deuterium, wo die Übergangsenergien zwischen verschiedenen Energiezuständen des an den Kern gebundenen Elektrons mit Techniken wie ultrastabilen Lasern und dem Frequenzkamm genau gemessen werden können. Aufgrund der Einfachheit der wasserstoffähnlichen Atome können ihre Energieniveaus anhand der QED-Theorie für gebundene Zustände genau berechnet werden, und mit dem Experiment mit der relativen Genauigkeit in der Größenordnung von 101210^{-12} verglichen werden. Ein solcher Vergleich zwischen Theorie und Experiment ist mit der Bestimmung von Naturkonstanten verbunden, die als Parameter in die Theorie eingehen. Erst wenn mehr unabhängige Messungen als Parameter vorliegen, kann die Theorie überprüft werden. Der Vergleich zwischen Theorie und Laser-Spektroskopie im Deuterium betrifft die Ryd-berg-Konstante RR_\infty und den Deuteronen-Ladungsradius rdr_d. Dies erfordert mindestens zwei Messungen der verschiedenen Übergangsfrequenzen, um diese Konstanten zu bestimmen, und mehr Messungen, um die Theorie zu testen. Im Gegensatz zum Wasserstoff gibt es bei Deuterium nur wenige ausreichend genaue Messungen der Übergänge. In dieser Arbeit wird die erste Untersuchung des 2S-6P-Übergangs in Deuterium vorgestellt, die mit der bestehenden Frequenzmessung des 1S-2S-Übergangs kombiniert werden kann, um RR_\infty und rdr_d zu erhalten. Zusammen mit der Messung des 2S-2P-Übergangs von myonischem Deuterium stellt diese Bestimmung einen Theorietest dar. Ein solcher Vergleich ist wichtig, um die anhaltende Diskrepanz zwischen dem Ergebnis aus myonischem Deuterium und dem Durchschnitt früherer Daten aus elektronischem Deuterium, sowie die Spannungen zwischen den jüngsten Ergebnissen aus der Wasserstoffspektroskopie, zu beleuchten. Im Gegensatz zu Wasserstoff wird die Präzisionsspektroskopie des 2S-6P-Übergangs in Deuterium durch die gleichzeitige Anregung unaufgelöster Hyperfeinstruktur-Komponenten erschwert, was zur unaufgelösten Quanteninterferenz führen kann. Diese Arbeit untersucht die möglichen systematischen Effekte, die mit dieser Komplikation verbunden sind. Zusammen mit analytischen störungstheoretischen Modellen werden Supercomputersimulationen durchgeführt, um diese Effekte zu analysieren. Es wird gezeigt, dass die Quanteninterferenz für alle 2S-nnP-Übergänge in Deuterium stark unterdrückt wird, wodurch Präzisionsmessungen dieser Übergänge möglich werden. Darüber hinaus wird ein weiterer Effekt in Deuterium im Vergleich zu Wasserstoff untersucht, der sich aus der Lichtkraft ergibt, die auf die Atome in der stehenden Welle des Spektroskopielichts wirkt. Trotz zusätzlicher Zustandsvielfalt durch die gleichzeitige Anregung unaufgelöster Hyperfeinkomponenten wird gezeigt, dass diese sogenannte ``Lichtkraftverschiebung'' mit dem gut verstandenen Effekt im Wasserstoff vergleichbar ist. Die größte Herausforderung bei der Messung des 2S-6P-Ein-Photonen-Übergangs in Deuterium ist die Doppler-Verschiebung erster Ordnung. Ein großer Teil dieser Arbeit befasst sich daher mit dem verbesserten aktiven faserbasierten Retroreflektor (AFR), der eine Technik zur Unterdrückung dieser Verschiebung darstellt. Der zentrale Teil des AFR ist der Faserkollimator, der für die Erzeugung hochwertiger gegenläufiger Laserstrahlen erforderlich ist. Die Entwicklung und Charakterisierung eines solchen Kollimators für die nahe ultraviolette Wellenlänge des 2S-6P-Übergangs ist eine der wichtigsten Errungenschaften des verbesserten AFR. Die Ergebnisse dieser Arbeit können für andere Anwendungen von Interesse sein, bei denen eine hohe Strahlqualität oder wellenfront-zurückverfolgende Strahlen wichtig sind. Darüber hinaus werden die Einschränkungen der AFR untersucht, die sich aus polarisationserhaltenden Singlemode-Fasern ergeben. Neben anderen Verbesserungen wurde eine Polarisationsüberwachung der Spektroskopielaserstrahlen implementiert. Es werden verschiedene Charakterisierungsmessungen vorgestellt, um die Leistungsfähigkeit des verbesserten AFR zu demonstrieren. Schließlich wird in dieser Arbeit eine vorläufige Messung des 2S-6P-Übergangs in Deuterium vorgestellt. Für diese Messung wurde ein neuer Kryostat in die Apparatur eingebaut, der die Stabilität des Spektroskopiesignals durch reduzierte Temperaturschwankungen verbessert. Die Erzeugung des kryogenen Deuterium-Atomstrahls wurde in Abhängigkeit von der Düsentemperatur analysiert, was eine wichtige Studie für künftige Spektroskopiemessungen darstellt. Darüber hinaus wurden für die Präzisionsmessung verschiedene systematische Effekte untersucht, darunter die Fehlausrichtung des Atomstrahls und die elektrischen Streufelder. Es wird gezeigt, dass eine Präzisionsmessung des 2S-6P-Übergangs in Deuterium mit einer ähnlichen Unsicherheit wie in Wasserstoff machbar ist. Nach der vorläufigen Unsicherheitsabschätzung kann die 2S1/2_{1/2}-6P1/2_{1/2}-Übergangsfrequenz in Deuterium auf \SI{1.7}{kHz} bestimmt werden, was einer relativen Genauigkeit von 2.3×10122.3 \times 10^{-12} entspricht. Zusammen mit der 1S-2S-Messung kann dieses Ergebnis bereits die genauesten Bestimmungen des Deuteronenradius und der Rydberg-Konstante aus dem elektronischen Deuterium ermöglichen, sodass die Unsicherheiten für die Rydberg-Konstante und den Deuteronenradius δR5×105m1\delta R_\infty \simeq 5\times 10^{-5}\,\text{m}^{-1} bzw.~\delta r_d \simeq \SI{0.002}{fm} betragen. Dieses Ergebnis bildet die Grundlage für eine zukünftige Präzisionsmessung, bei der die 2S-6P-Übergangsfrequenz mit ähnlicher Genauigkeit wie bei Wasserstoff bestimmt werden soll, was δR2×105m1\delta R_\infty \simeq 2\times 10^{-5}\,\text{m}^{-1} und \delta r_d \simeq \SI{0.0007}{fm} entsprechen würde. Der Vergleich mit dem Ergebnis von myonischem Deuterium würde es dann erlauben, die QED-Theorie für gebundene Zustände auf dem Niveau von 9×10139 \times 10^{-13} zu testen.Quantum electrodynamics (QED) forms the basis for all other quantum field theories, upon which the Standard Model of particle physics is constructed. Currently, it is clear that our fundamental understanding of nature is incomplete, such that the Standard Model is expected to be modified or extended by new particles or interactions. One way to explore these frontiers of fundamental physics is to perform precision measurements. This thesis studies the precision laser spectroscopy of deuterium, where the transition energies between different energy states of the electron bound to the nucleus can be accurately measured with techniques such as ultra-stable lasers and the frequency comb. Due to the simplicity of hydrogen-like atoms, their energy levels can be precisely calculated from bound-state QED and confronted with the experiment with the relative accuracy on the order of 101210^{-12}. Such a comparison between theory and experiment is linked to the determination of fundamental constants, which enter the theory as parameters. Only if more indepedendent measurements are available than there are parameters, the theory can be tested. The comparison between theory and laser spectroscopy in deuterium concerns the Rydberg constant RR_\infty and the deuteron charge radius rdr_d. This requires at least two different transition frequency measurements to determine those constants, and more measurements to test the theory. Contrary to hydrogen, only few accurate enough transition frequency measurements are available in deuterium. This thesis presents the first study of the 2S-6P transition in deuterium, which can be combined with the existing 1S-2S transition frequency measurement to obtain RR_\infty and rdr_d. Together with the 2S-2P transition measurement from muonic deuterium, this determination provides a theory test. Such a comparison is important to shine light on the persisting discrepancy between the result from muonic deuterium and the average of previous data from electronic deuterium, as well as tensions between the recent results from hydrogen spectroscopy. In contrast to hydrogen, precision spectroscopy of the 2S-6P transition in deuterium is complicated by the simultaneous excitation of unresolved hyperfine components, possibly leading to unresolved quantum interference. This thesis studies the possible systematic effects associated with this complication. Along with analytical perturbative models, supercomputer simulations are performed to analyze these effects. It is shown, that quantum interference is strongly suppressed for all 2S-nnP transitions in deuterium, making precision measurements of these transitions possible. Furthermore, another effect is studied in deuterium compared to hydrogen, which arises from the light force acting on the atoms in the standing wave of the spectroscopy light. Despite additional state manifolds from the simultaneous excitation of unresolved hyperfine components, it is shown that this so-called ``light force shift'' is comparable to the well understood effect in hydrogen. The main challenge of measuring the one-photon 2S-6P transition in deuterium is the first-order Doppler shift. Therefore, a large part of this thesis contributes to the improved active fiber-based retroreflector (AFR), which is a technique to suppress this shift. The central part of the AFR is the fiber collimator, which is required to produce high-quality counter-propagating laser beams. Designing and characterizing such a collimator for the near ultra-violet wavelength of the 2S-6P transition is one of the main achievements of the improved AFR. The results of this work can be of interest to other applications where a high beam quality or wavefront-retracing beams are important. Furthermore, the limitations of the AFR arising from single-mode polarization-maintaining fibers are investigated. Along with other improvements, a polarization monitor of the spectroscopy laser beams has been implemented. Various characterization measurements are presented to demonstrate the performance of the improved AFR. Finally, this thesis presents a preliminary measurement of the 2S-6P transition in deuterium. For this measurement, a new cryostat has been installed in the apparatus, which improves the stability of the spectroscopy signal due to reduced temperature fluctuations. The cryogenic deuterium atomic beam generation has been analyzed in dependence on the nozzle temperature, which is an important study for future spectroscopy measurements. Furthermore, for the precision measurement different systematic effects have been investigated, including the atomic beam misalignment and the stray electric fields. It is demonstrated that a precision measurement of the 2S-6P transition in deuterium with a similar uncertainty than in hydrogen is feasible. According to the preliminary uncertainty budget, the 2S1/2_{1/2}-6P1/2_{1/2} transition frequency in deuterium can be determined to \SI{1.7}{kHz}, which corresponds to 2.3×10122.3 \times 10^{-12} relative accuracy. Together with the 1S-2S measurement, already this result can enable the most accurate determinations of the deuteron radius and the Rydberg constant from the electronic deuterium with the uncertainties on the Rydberg constant and the deuteron radius of δR5×105m1\delta R_\infty \simeq 5\times 10^{-5}\,\text{m}^{-1} and \delta r_d \simeq \SI{0.002}{fm}, respectively. This result sets the stage for a future precision measurement, where the 2S-6P transition frequency is expected to be determined with the similar accuracy as in hydrogen, which would correspond to δR2×105m1\delta R_\infty \simeq 2\times 10^{-5}\,\text{m}^{-1} and \delta r_d \simeq \SI{0.0007}{fm}. The comparison to the result from muonic deuterium would then allow to test bound-state QED at the level of 9×10139 \times 10^{-13}

    Caractérisation mécanique in vivo des tissus mous : application à la peau humaine et la chéloïde

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    The development of keloids, benign tumors on human skin, is not exclusively due to biological or genetic factors. The presence of anatomical sites favorable to the appearance of these tumors, while others are lacking them, attests to the importance of the mechanical environment of the tissue. The thesis aims to address the problem of keloid growth by developing a patient-specific pipeline, SofTI, based on in vivo experimental measurements and numerical modeling. The objective is to prevent further propagation of keloidic scars via a medical containment solution by identifying optimal material parameters to quantify mechanical stress and map its privileged direction locally. Additionally, the research work introduces MARSAC methodology to characterize the anisotropy in an undamaged skin by estimating Langer's line and stiffness along and across it with an in vivo multi-axial annular suction experiment. The method was used to analyze intra-subject and subject-to-subject variability over a clinical trial.Le développement des chéloïdes, tumeurs bénignes sur la peau humaine, n'est pas exclusivement dû à des facteurs biologiques ou génétiques. La présence de sites anatomiques favorables à l'apparition de ces tumeurs, tandis que d'autres en manquent, atteste de l'importance de l'environnement mécanique du tissu. La thèse vise à résoudre le problème de la croissance des chéloïdes en développant une méthode patient-spécifique, SofTI, basée sur des mesures expérimentales in vivo et une modélisation numérique. L'objectif est de prévenir la propagation des cicatrices chéloïdiennes à l'aide d'une solution médicale de contention en identifiant les paramètres matériau optimaux pour quantifier les contraintes mécaniques et cartographier ses directions privilégiées localement. De plus, le travail de recherche présente la méthodologie MARSAC pour charactériser l'anisotropie dans la peau saine en identifiant la ligne de Langer et la raideur le long et à travers celle-ci partant d'une expérience d'aspiration annulaire multi-axiale in vivo. La méthode a été employée pour analyser la variabilité intra- et inter-sujets sur un essai clinique

    Roadmap on Label-Free Super-resolution Imaging

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    Label-free super-resolution (LFSR) imaging relies on light-scattering processes in nanoscale objects without a need for fluorescent (FL) staining required in super-resolved FL microscopy. The objectives of this Roadmap are to present a comprehensive vision of the developments, the state-of-the-art in this field, and to discuss the resolution boundaries and hurdles that need to be overcome to break the classical diffraction limit of the label-free imaging. The scope of this Roadmap spans from the advanced interference detection techniques, where the diffraction-limited lateral resolution is combined with unsurpassed axial and temporal resolution, to techniques with true lateral super-resolution capability that are based on understanding resolution as an information science problem, on using novel structured illumination, near-field scanning, and nonlinear optics approaches, and on designing superlenses based on nanoplasmonics, metamaterials, transformation optics, and microsphere-assisted approaches. To this end, this Roadmap brings under the same umbrella researchers from the physics and biomedical optics communities in which such studies have often been developing separately. The ultimate intent of this paper is to create a vision for the current and future developments of LFSR imaging based on its physical mechanisms and to create a great opening for the series of articles in this field.Peer reviewe

    Coherent and Holographic Imaging Methods for Immersive Near-Eye Displays

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    Lähinäytöt on suunniteltu tarjoamaan realistisia kolmiulotteisia katselukokemuksia, joille on merkittävää tarvetta esimerkiksi työkoneiden etäkäytössä ja 3D-suunnittelussa. Nykyaikaiset lähinäytöt tuottavat kuitenkin edelleen ristiriitaisia visuaalisia vihjeitä, jotka heikentävät immersiivistä kokemusta ja haittaavat niiden miellyttävää käyttöä. Merkittävänä ratkaisuvaihtoehtona pidetään koherentin valon, kuten laservalon, käyttöä näytön valaistukseen, millä voidaan korjata nykyisten lähinäyttöjen puutteita. Erityisesti koherentti valaistus mahdollistaa holografisen kuvantamisen, jota käyttävät holografiset näytöt voivat tarkasti jäljitellä kolmiulotteisten mallien todellisia valoaaltoja. Koherentin valon käyttäminen näyttöjen valaisemiseen aiheuttaa kuitenkin huomiota vaativaa korkean kontrastin häiriötä pilkkukuvioiden muodossa. Lisäksi holografisten näyttöjen laskentamenetelmät ovat laskennallisesti vaativia ja asettavat uusia haasteita analyysin, pilkkuhäiriön ja valon mallintamisen suhteen. Tässä väitöskirjassa tutkitaan laskennallisia menetelmiä lähinäytöille koherentissa kuvantamisjärjestelmässä käyttäen signaalinkäsittelyä, koneoppimista sekä geometrista (säde) ja fysikaalista (aalto) optiikan mallintamista. Työn ensimmäisessä osassa keskitytään holografisten kuvantamismuotojen analysointiin sekä kehitetään hologrammien laskennallisia menetelmiä. Holografian korkeiden laskentavaatimusten ratkaisemiseksi otamme käyttöön holografiset stereogrammit holografisen datan likimääräisenä esitysmuotona. Tarkastelemme kyseisen esitysmuodon visuaalista oikeellisuutta kehittämällä analyysikehyksen holografisen stereogrammin tarjoamien visuaalisten vihjeiden tarkkuudelle akkommodaatiota varten suhteessa sen suunnitteluparametreihin. Lisäksi ehdotamme signaalinkäsittelyratkaisua pilkkuhäiriön vähentämiseksi, ratkaistaksemme nykyisten menetelmien valon mallintamiseen liittyvät visuaalisia artefakteja aiheuttavat ongelmat. Kehitämme myös uudenlaisen holografisen kuvantamismenetelmän, jolla voidaan mallintaa tarkasti valon käyttäytymistä haastavissa olosuhteissa, kuten peiliheijastuksissa. Väitöskirjan toisessa osassa lähestytään koherentin näyttökuvantamisen laskennallista taakkaa koneoppimisen avulla. Kehitämme koherentin akkommodaatioinvariantin lähinäytön suunnittelukehyksen, jossa optimoidaan yhtäaikaisesti näytön staattista optiikka ja näytön kuvan esikäsittelyverkkoa. Lopuksi nopeutamme ehdottamaamme uutta holografista kuvantamismenetelmää koneoppimisen avulla reaaliaikaisia sovelluksia varten. Kyseiseen ratkaisuun sisältyy myös tehokkaan menettelyn kehittäminen funktionaalisten satunnais-3D-ympäristöjen tuottamiseksi. Kehittämämme menetelmä mahdollistaa suurten synteettisten moninäkökulmaisten kuvien datasettien tuottamisen, joilla voidaan kouluttaa sopivia neuroverkkoja mallintamaan holografista kuvantamismenetelmäämme reaaliajassa. Kaiken kaikkiaan tässä työssä kehitettyjen menetelmien osoitetaan olevan erittäin kilpailukykyisiä uusimpien koherentin valon lähinäyttöjen laskentamenetelmien kanssa. Työn tuloksena nähdään kaksi vaihtoehtoista lähestymistapaa ristiriitaisten visuaalisten vihjeiden aiheuttamien nykyisten lähinäyttöongelmien ratkaisemiseksi joko staattisella tai dynaamisella optiikalla ja reaaliaikaiseen käyttöön soveltuvilla laskentamenetelmillä. Esitetyt tulokset ovat näin ollen tärkeitä seuraavan sukupolven immersiivisille lähinäytöille.Near-eye displays have been designed to provide realistic 3D viewing experience, strongly demanded in applications, such as remote machine operation, entertainment, and 3D design. However, contemporary near-eye displays still generate conflicting visual cues which degrade the immersive experience and hinders their comfortable use. Approaches using coherent, e.g., laser light for display illumination have been considered prominent for tackling the current near-eye display deficiencies. Coherent illumination enables holographic imaging whereas holographic displays are expected to accurately recreate the true light waves of a desired 3D scene. However, the use of coherent light for driving displays introduces additional high contrast noise in the form of speckle patterns, which has to be taken care of. Furthermore, imaging methods for holographic displays are computationally demanding and impose new challenges in analysis, speckle noise and light modelling. This thesis examines computational methods for near-eye displays in the coherent imaging regime using signal processing, machine learning, and geometrical (ray) and physical (wave) optics modeling. In the first part of the thesis, we concentrate on analysis of holographic imaging modalities and develop corresponding computational methods. To tackle the high computational demands of holography, we adopt holographic stereograms as an approximative holographic data representation. We address the visual correctness of such representation by developing a framework for analyzing the accuracy of accommodation visual cues provided by a holographic stereogram in relation to its design parameters. Additionally, we propose a signal processing solution for speckle noise reduction to overcome existing issues in light modelling causing visual artefacts. We also develop a novel holographic imaging method to accurately model lighting effects in challenging conditions, such as mirror reflections. In the second part of the thesis, we approach the computational complexity aspects of coherent display imaging through deep learning. We develop a coherent accommodation-invariant near-eye display framework to jointly optimize static display optics and a display image pre-processing network. Finally, we accelerate the corresponding novel holographic imaging method via deep learning aimed at real-time applications. This includes developing an efficient procedure for generating functional random 3D scenes for forming a large synthetic data set of multiperspective images, and training a neural network to approximate the holographic imaging method under the real-time processing constraints. Altogether, the methods developed in this thesis are shown to be highly competitive with the state-of-the-art computational methods for coherent-light near-eye displays. The results of the work demonstrate two alternative approaches for resolving the existing near-eye display problems of conflicting visual cues using either static or dynamic optics and computational methods suitable for real-time use. The presented results are therefore instrumental for the next-generation immersive near-eye displays

    Information limits of imaging through highly diffusive materials using spatiotemporal measurements of diffuse photons

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    Conventional medical imaging instruments are bulky, expensive, and use harmful ionising radiation. Combining ultrafast single-photon detectors and pulsed laser sources at optical wavelengths has the potential to offer inexpensive, safe, and potentially wearable alternatives. However, photons at optical wavelengths are strongly scattered by biological tissue, which corrupts direct imaging information about regions of absorbing interactions below the tissue surface. The work in this thesis studies the potential of measuring indirect imaging information by resolving diffuse photon measurements in space and time. The practical limits of imaging through highly diffusive material, e.g., biological tissue, is explored and validated with experimental measurements. The ill-posed problem of using the information in diffuse photon measurements to reconstruct images at the limits of the highly diffusive regime is tackled using probabilistic machine learning, demonstrating the potential of migrating diffuse optical imaging techniques beyond the currently accepted limits and underlining the importance of uncertainty quantification in reconstructions. The thesis is concluded with a challenging biomedical optics experiment to transmit photons diametrically through an adult human head. This problem was tackled experimentally and numerically using an anatomically accurate Monte Carlo simulation which uncovered key practical considerations when detecting photons at the extreme limits of the highly diffusive regime. Although the experimental measurements were inconclusive, comparisons with the numerical results were promising. More in-depth numerical simulations indicated that light could be guided in regions of low scattering and absorption to reach deep areas inside the head, and photons can, in principle, be transmitted through the entire diameter of the head. The collective evidence presented in this thesis reveals the potential of diffuse optical imaging to extend beyond the currently accepted limits to non-invasively image deep regions of the human body and brain using optical wavelengths
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