Photoacoustic microscope apparatus
AssigneeOlympus Corporation
InventorIkutoshi Fukushima
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A photoacoustic microscope apparatus includes a light source that emits excitation light which generates photoacoustic waves, an objective lens which focuses the excitation light on a specimen, a scanning unit which moves a focused position of the excitation light on the specimen, a photoacoustic-wave detecting unit which has a sensor unit that detects a photoacoustic wave generated, and an image constructing unit which constructs an image based on data from the photoacoustic-wave detecting unit. For the sensor unit, an angle of a range which is capable of receiving the photoacoustic wave incident on the sensor unit is larger than an angle corresponding to a numerical aperture on a side illuminated of the objective lens.
Claims14
A photoacoustic microscope apparatus comprising:
- a light source that emits an excitation light which generates photoacoustic waves;
- an objective lens which focuses the excitation light on a specimen;
- a scanning unit which moves a focused position of the excitation light on the specimen;
- a photoacoustic-wave detecting unit which has a fiber sensor that detects the photoacoustic waves generated;
- and
- an image constructing unit which constructs an image based on data from the photoacoustic-wave detecting unit, wherein
- the scanning unit includes a movable mirror which changes an angle of incidence of the excitation light incident on the objective lens,
- for the fiber sensor, an angle of a range which is capable of receiving the photoacoustic waves incident on the fiber sensor is larger than an angle corresponding to a numerical aperture on a side illuminated of the objective lens, and
- the photoacoustic microscope apparatus satisfies the following conditional expression:
- Zs×tan(θ+α)>Xr+d
- where,
- θ denotes an angle of a range in which, the fiber sensor can receive the photoacoustic waves,
- α denotes an angle made by a central axis of a directionality of the fiber sensor with an optical axis of the objective lens,
- Xr denotes a radius of the maximum area to be observed,
- d denotes a distance in an observation plane perpendicular to the optical axis, between the optical axis of the objective lens and the fiber sensor, and
- Zs denotes a distance in a direction along the optical axis of the objective lens, between a focused position by the objective lens and the fiber sensor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.