Optical microscopy

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2022011560-A1
Application number	US-201917296212-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Nov 22, 2019
Priority date	Nov 22, 2018
Publication date	Jan 13, 2022
Grant date	—

Abstract

A method of increasing the interference contrast in interferometric scattering optical microscopy. The method comprises providing a particle detection region comprising a chamber or channel having a boundary defined by one or more interfaces, illuminating a particle in the particle detection region with coherent light using an objective lens such that the light is reflected from the interface and scattered by the particle, capturing the reflected light and the scattered light using the objective lens, and providing the captured reflected and scattered light to an imaging device to image interference between the reflected light and the scattered light. The particle is illuminated by coherent light at an oblique angle to the interface.

First claim

1 . A method of increasing the signal contrast in interferometric scattering optical microscopy, the method comprising:
providing a particle detection region having a boundary defined by an interface; illuminating a particle in the particle detection region with coherent light using an objective lens such that the light is reflected from the interface and scattered by the particle; capturing the reflected light and the scattered light using the objective lens; and providing the captured reflected and scattered light to an imaging device to image interference between the reflected light and the scattered light; wherein the objective lens has an optical axis, the method further comprising providing the coherent light to the objective lens offset from the optical axis of the objective lens such that the coherent light illuminating the particle is at an oblique angle to the interface.

2 . A method as claimed in claim 1 further comprising linearly polarizing the coherent light illuminating the particle such that the coherent light illuminating the particle is partially or completely p-polarized with respect to a plane of incidence of the coherent light on the interface.

3 . A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the oblique angle defines substantially Brewster's angle for the coherent light at the interface.

4 . A method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising adjusting the oblique angle to maximize a signal-to-noise ratio of the interference between the reflected light and the scattered light.

5 . A method as claimed in claim 1 comprising providing the particle in solution and using a chamber or channel with a pair of opposite boundaries configured to restrict motion of the particle in a direction along the optical axis to a distance less than 3/2λ, λ, or λ/2, where λ is the wavelength of the coherent light.

6 . A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the particle comprises a biological molecule in aqueous solution.

7 . A method as claimed in claim 1 further comprising processing the imaged interference to determine a difference between the imaged interference at two different times, and Fourier transforming the difference to characterize the particle or a solution of the particles.

8 . An interferometric scattering optical microscope, the microscope comprising:
a particle detection region having a boundary defined by an interface; a source of coherent light; an objective lens to direct the coherent light to illuminate a particle in the particle detection region such that the light is reflected from the interface and scattered by the particle; wherein the objective lens has an optical axis and is configured to capture the reflected light and the scattered light; and an imaging device configured to image interference between the reflected light and the scattered light; and wherein an optical path of the coherent light to the objective lens is offset from the optical axis of the objective lens such that the coherent light illuminating the particle is at an oblique angle to the interface.

9 . A microscope as claimed in claim 8 wherein the source of coherent light is linearly polarized such that the coherent light illuminating the particle is partially or completely p-polarized with respect to a plane of incidence of the coherent light on the interface.

10 . A method or microscope as claimed in claim 8 wherein the coherent light illuminating the particle at an oblique angle comprises a collimated beam of coherent light, and wherein the coherent light provided to the objective lens is focussed at a back focal plane of the objective lens.

11 . A method or microscope as claimed in claim 8 wherein an angle of incidence of the coherent light at the interface is between i) an angle value at which, at the imaging device, an intensity of the reflected light is greater than an intensity of light reflected from a back surface of the objective lens, and ii) the angle value plus 10 degrees.

12 . A method or microscope as claimed in claim 8 further comprising an off-axis spatial filter at or adjacent a Fourier plane of the objective lens configured to selectively mask a region of the Fourier plane offset from the optical axis in an opposite direction to the offset from the optical axis of the optical path of the coherent light to the objective lens.

13 . A method or microscope as claimed in claim 8 wherein the spatial filter mask is located at or adjacent a back focal plane of the objective lens or at a focal plane of the coherent light, and is configured to mask a region located at the focus of a reflection of the coherent light from the interface.

14 . A method or microscope as claimed in claim 8 wherein the coherent light is polarized, and an analyser with an orthogonal polarization is provided in an optical path between the particle and the imaging device.

15 . A microscope as claimed in claim 8 further comprising a processor to process the imaged interference to determine a difference between the imaged interference at two different times, and to Fourier transform the difference to characterize the particle or a solution of the particles.

16 . A method or microscope as claimed in claim 8 wherein a rear surface of the objective lens is curved.

17 . A method or microscope as claimed in claim 8 wherein the particle detection region comprises a chamber or channel.

Assignees

• Cambridge Entpr Ltd

Inventors

• Knowles Tuomas Pertti Jonathan
• Challa Pavan Kumar
• Saar Kadi Liis
• Peter Quentin Alexis
• Toprakcioglu Zenon

Classifications

• G02B21/14 Primary

  affording illumination for phase-contrast observation · CPC title

• G01N21/4795

  spatially resolved investigating of object in scattering medium (in vivo A61B) · CPC title

• G02B21/361

  Optical details, e.g. image relay to the camera or image sensor (G02B21/364 takes precedence; illumination details G02B21/06 and subgroups) · CPC title

• G02B21/0056 Primary

  based on optical coherence, e.g. phase-contrast arrangements, interference arrangements · CPC title

• G01N21/45

  using interferometric methods; using Schlieren methods · CPC title