System and method for providing surgical guidance based on polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography

A system comprising:

• a laser emitting linearly polarized light;
• one or more fiber couplers;
• an Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) reference arm including a first quarter wave plate (QWP);
• an OCT sample arm including a second QWP;
• one or more polarization beam splitters (PBS);
• a first detector and a second detector for each of the one or more PBSs,
• the linearly polarized light being split between the OCT reference arm and the OCT sample arm by the one or more fiber couplers, the OCT reference arm configured to:
• reflect reference polarized light back to the one or more fiber couplers after the reference polarized light passes twice through the first QWP;
• and the OCT sample arm configured to scan polarized light across a sample after the linearly polarized light passes through the second QWP;
• and convey sample light from the sample back through the second QWP to the one or more fiber couplers,
• the one or more fiber couplers further interfering the reference polarized light with the sample light into combined light, and conveying the combined light to the one or more PBSs, the one or more PBSs splitting the combined light into first polarization state light and second polarization state light, the first polarization state light detected by the first detector, and the second polarization state light detected by the second detector,
• wherein light is conveyed between optical components using polarization-maintaining (PM) optical fibers,
• wherein respective PM optical fibers conveying the light between the one or more fiber couplers and each of the OCT reference arm and the OCT sample arm comprises:
• respective fiber pigtails optically connected to the one or more fiber couplers using a connector-free optical connection, and
• wherein one or more of the respective fiber pigtails is respectively connected to the OCT reference arm and the OCT sample arm using a respective connector-free optical connection.