Ultrahigh-resolution, high-speed spectral domain optical coherence phase microscopy

We present an ultrahigh-resolution, high-speed spectral domain optical coherence phase microscopy (SD-OCPM) system that combines submicrometer transverse spatial resolution and subnanometer optical path length sensitivity, with an acquisition speed of over 217,000 voxels/s. The proposed SD-OCPM system overcomes two significant drawbacks of traditional common-path interferometers-limited transverse spatial resolution and suboptimal detection sensitivity-while maintaining phase stability that is comparable with common-path interferometer setups. The transverse and axial spatial resolution of the setup is measured to be 0.6 and 1.9 mu m, respectively, with a phase sensitivity of 0.0027 rad (corresponds to optical path length sensitivity of 110 pm). High-speed acquisition allows for phase-sensitive 4D imaging of biological samples with subcellular resolution. (C) 2013 Optical Society of America