Phased-array MASER detector for synthetic aperture interferometric imaging

A method of energy activity mapping of a biological object using real-time MASER (Microwave Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation) interferometry, the method comprising the steps of:

• emitting a beam of coherent MASER radiation and passing the emitted beam through a collimator;
• splitting of the collimated beam of coherent MASER radiation into a probe beam and a reference beam;
• passing the probe beam through the biological object to create a modulated probe beam and simultaneously passing the reference beam through a uniform substance resulting in a delay of the reference beam similar to that of the probe beam caused by the biological object in order to generate a lagged reference beam;
• combining the lagged reference beam and the modulated probe beam to create a convolved beam characterized by a time-shifting interference pattern;
• detecting time-sliced intensity data of interference pattern in the convolved beam with a plurality of detector elements of a phased array detector, wherein the plurality of the detector elements in the phased array detector are arranged in a first planar layer and in a second planar layer that is parallel to the first planar layer and in which the detector elements are offset in three dimensions from the detector elements in the first planar layer;
• recording the time-sliced intensity data of the interference pattern detected by the plurality of detector elements in a database;
• de-convolving the time-sliced intensity data of the interference pattern to generate processed data that quantify changes in one or more of phase, modulation, amplitude, and lag between the modulated probe beam and the lagged reference beam and to create a holographic perspective map;
• populating a voxel map with the processed data for the slice of time from the given holographic perspective and repeating this step from multiple holographic perspectives in accordance with a synthetic aperture algorithm;
• associating the voxel map with an image generated by a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or computerized tomography (CT) scan to create a three-dimensional energy activity map for the given time slice;
• and
• displaying the three-dimensional energy activity map for the given time slice of the biological object or a portion of the biological object.