Imaging system with confocally self-detecting laser

A confocal laser imaging system using self-detection comprising

• a laser source including an electrically scannable array of microlasers for emitting a plurality of non-overlapping laser beams, said microlasers each having a beam emitting face constituting a pinhole such that light reflected back to said laser source from an object re-enters and modulates intensity of said microlasers,
• a cube having opposing first and second surfaces in optical alignment, and a third surface, said laser source being optically coupled to said first surface, and said cube including means for deflecting a portion of each of said laser beams to said third surface, and
• a detector optically coupled to said third surface for generating an electrical signal representative of intensity of each of said portions of said laser beams such that when said microlasers are actuated in a time-variant order to scan an object the detector produces an electronic image signal of the object.

A microlaser imaging device comprising

• a detector for converting light impinging thereon to an electrical output signal,
• an array of microlasers extending over a region and having first ends directing laser light at said detector, and second ends directing laser light in an opposite direction,
• an optical element imaging said laser light directed in the opposite direction at an object so that light reflected from the object is returned by said optical element to said array of microlasers, wherein each microlaser of said array of microlasers forms a pinhole such that light from a focal region of the object is selectively admitted to the microlaser and modulates its output in accordance with brightness of said focal region so that the electrical output signal of the detector is representative of an image of the object.