Transport in quenched disorder: light diffusion in strongly heterogeneous turbid media

We present a theoretical and experimental study of light transport in disordered media with strongly heterogeneous distribution of scatterers formed via non-scattering regions. Step correlations induced by quenched disorder are found to prevent diffusivity from diverging with increasing heterogeneity scale, contrary to expectations from annealed models. Spectral diffusivity is measured for a porous ceramic where nanopores act as scatterers and macropores render their distribution heterogeneous. Results agree well with Monte Carlo simulations and a proposed analytical model.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figures (significant amount of supplemental information

Beyond multi-view deconvolution for inherently-aligned fluorescence tomography

In multi-view fluorescence microscopy, each angular acquisition needs to be aligned with care to obtain an optimal volumetric reconstruction. Here, instead, we propose a neat protocol based on auto-correlation inversion, that leads directly to the formation of inherently aligned tomographies. Our method generates sharp reconstructions, with the same accuracy reachable after sub-pixel alignment but with improved point-spread-function. The procedure can be performed simultaneously with deconvolution further increasing the reconstruction resolution

Clinical trial of time-resolved scanning optical mammography at 4 wavelengths between 683 and 975 nm

The first time-resolved optical mammograph operating beyond 900 nm (683, 785, 913, and 975 nm) is presently being used in a clinical trial to test the diagnostic potential of the technique in detecting and characterizing breast lesions. Between November 2001 and October 2002, 101 patients with malignant and benign lesions were analyzed retrospectively. Scattering plots, as derived from a homogeneous model, and late gated intensity images, to monitor spatial changes in the absorption properties, are routinely used. The intensity images available at four wavelengths provide sensitivity to the main tissue constituents (oxy- and deoxyhemoglobin, water, and lipids), in agreement with expected tissue composition and physiology, while the scattering plots mirror structural changes. Briefly, tumors are usually identified due to the strong blood absorption at short wavelengths, cysts to the low scattering, and fibroadenomas to low absorption at 913 nm and high at 975 nm, even though the optical features of fibroadenomas seem not to be uniquely defined. The effectiveness of the technique in localizing and discriminating different lesion types is analyzed as a function of various parameters (lesion size, compressed breast thickness, and breast parenchymal pattern).

Time resolved diffuse optical spectroscopy with geometrically accurate models for bulk parameter recovery

A novel straightforward, accessible and efficient approach is presented for performing hyperspectral time-domain diffuse optical spectroscopy to determine the optical properties of samples accurately using geometry specific models. To allow bulk parameter recovery from measured spectra, a set of libraries based on a numerical model of the domain being investigated is developed as opposed to the conventional approach of using an analytical semi-infinite slab approximation, which is known and shown to introduce boundary effects. Results demonstrate that the method improves the accuracy of derived spectrally varying optical properties over the use of the semi-infinite approximation

Selection Models for the Internal Quality of Fruit, based on Time Domain Laser Reflectance Spectroscopy

Time domain laser reflectance spectroscopy (TRS) was applied for the first time to evaluate internal fruit quality. This technique, known in medicine-related knowledge areas, has not been used before in agricultural or food research. It allows the simultaneous measurement of two optical characteristics of the sample: light scattering inside the tissues and light absorption. Models to estimate non-destructively firmness, soluble solids and acid contents in tomato, apple, peach and nectarine were developed using sequential statistical techniques: principal component analysis, multiple stepwise linear regression, clustering and discriminant analysis. Consistent correlations were established between the two parameters measured with TRS, i.e. absorption and transport scattering coefficients, with chemical constituents (soluble solids and acids) and firmness, respectively. Classification models were created to sort fruits into three quality grades (‘low’, ‘medium’ and ‘high’), according to their firmness, soluble solids and acidity

Detection of internal quality in kiwi with time-domain diffuse reflectance spectroscopy

Time-domain diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (TRS), a medical sensing technique, was used to evaluate internal kiwi fruit quality. The application of this pulsed laser spectroscopic technique was studied as a new, possible non-destructive, method to detect optically different quality parameters: firmness, sugar content, and acidity. The main difference with other spectroscopic techniques is that TRS estimates separately and at the same time absorbed light and scattering inside the sample, at each wavelength, allowing simultaneous estimations of firmness and chemical contents. Standard tests (flesh puncture, compression with ball, .Brix, total acidity, skin color) have been used as references to build estimative models, using a multivariate statistical approach. Classification functions of the fruits into three groups achieved a performance of 75% correctly classified fruits for firmness, 60% for sugar content, and 97% for acidity. Results demonstrate good potential for this technique to be used in the development of new sensors for non-destructive quality assessment

Time-Resolved Diffuse Optical Spectroscopy: A Differential Absorption Approach

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Noninvasive optical estimation of CSF thickness for brain-atrophy monitoring

Dementia disorders are increasingly becoming sources of a broad range of problems, strongly interfering with normal daily tasks of a growing number of individuals. Such neurodegenerative diseases are often accompanied with progressive brain atrophy that, at late stages, leads to drastically reduced brain dimensions. At the moment, this structural involution can be followed with XCT or MRI measurements that share numerous disadvantages in terms of usability, invasiveness and costs. In this work, we aim to retrieve information concerning the brain atrophy stage and its evolution, proposing a novel approach based on non-invasive time-resolved Near Infra-Red (tr-NIR) measurements. For this purpose, we created a set of human-head atlases, in which we eroded the brain as it would happen in a clinical brain-atrophy progression. With these realistic meshes, we reproduced a longitudinal tr-NIR study exploiting a Monte-Carlo photon propagation algorithm to model the varying cerebral spinal fluid (CSF). The study of the time-resolved reflectance curve at late photon arrival times exhibited peculiar slope-changes upon CSF layer increase that were confirmed under several measurement conditions. The performance of the technique suggests good sensitivity to CSF variation, useful for a fast and non-invasive observation of the dementia progression.Comment: 32 pages, double spaced, 11 figure

Attractive new technologies for 7-wavelength time domain optical mammography

An 8-channel Silicon PhotoMultiplier (SiPM) probe and Time-to-Digital-Converter (TDC) realize a higher-throughput, cheaper and compact detection chain for time-resolved optical mammography than photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) and Time Correlated Single Photon Counting (TCSPC) boards, providing comparable estimate of optical properties with increased optical responsivity