Fiber-coupled, high-speed, integrated, angled-dual-axis confocal scanning microscopes employing vertical cross-section scanning

An angled-dual-axis confocal scanning system comprising an angled-dual-axis confocal scanning head, wherein said angled-dual-axis confocal scanning head comprises:

• a) a first optical waveguide having first and second ends, for providing an illumination beam at said first end;
• b) a second optical waveguide having first and second ends;
• c) an angled-dual-axis focusing means for focusing said illumination beam to an illumination focal volume along an illumination axis within an object and for receiving an observation beam emanated from an observation focal volume along an observation axis within said object such that said observation beam is focused onto said first end of said second optical waveguide;
• and
• d) a bi-axial scanning mirror for producing a transverse cross-sectional scan, wherein said bi-axial scanning mirror is in optical communication with said focusing means and said object, wherein said bi-axial scanning mirror receives said illumination beam from said angled-dual-axis focusing means and directs said illumination beam to said illumination focal volume within said object, and wherein said bi-axial scanning mirror collects said observation beam emanated from said observation focal volume and passes said observation beam to said angled-dual-axis focusing means;
• wherein said illumination axis and said observation axis intersect at an angle within said object, such that said illumination focal volume and said observation focal volume intersect at a confocal overlapping volume, and wherein said bi-axial scanning mirror is capable of pivoting said illumination and observation beams in two orthogonal directions in such a way that said illumination axis and said observation axis remain intersecting at said angle and that said confocal overlapping volume moves along a transverse cross-section within said object, thereby producing said transverse cross-sectional scan.