Speckle reduction in optical coherence tomography by path length encoded angular compounding
AssigneeThe General Hospital Corporation
InventorsGuillermo J. Tearney, Nicusor Iftimia, Brett E. Bouma
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Abstract
Accordingly, exemplary embodiments of an apparatus probe catheter and method can be provided for irradiating a structure. In particular, an interferometer may forward forwarding an electromagnetic radiation. In addition, a sample arm may receive the electromagnetic radiation, and can include an arrangement which facilitates a production of at least two radiations from the electromagnetic radiation so as to irradiate the structure. Such exemplary arrangement can be configured to delay a first radiation of the at least two radiations with respect to a second radiation of the at least two radiations.
Claims22
An apparatus for irradiating a structure, comprising:
- a sample arm configuration configured to receive an electromagnetic radiation and including an arrangement, the arrangement being configured to produce at least two radiations from the electromagnetic radiation so as to irradiate the structure, wherein the arrangement including at least one of:
- a first optical section with a refractive index of at least 1.5, the first section being structured to propagate the radiations, and
- a second section which has silicon, the second section being structured to propagate the radiations.
An apparatus for obtaining information associated with a structure, comprising;
- a first arrangement configured to receive first and second radiations from the structure associated with particular radiations forwarded to the structure which have different path lengths and a third radiation received from a reference;
- a second arrangement configured to generate:
- first data associated with the first radiation which includes a first speckle pattern and second data associated with the second radiation which includes a second speckle pattern, and
- third data associated with the structure based on the first and second data that has a speckle pattern the amount of which is smaller than the amount of at least one of the first speckle pattern or the second speckle pattern.
An apparatus for obtaining information associated with a structure, comprising;
- a first arrangement configured to separate at least one first electro-magnetic radiation into a first radiation and a second radiation forwarded to the structure, wherein the first and second radiations have different path lengths;
- a second arrangement configured to receive third and fourth radiations from the structure associated with the first and second radiations and a fifth radiation received from a reference;
- and
- a third arrangement configured to generate data corresponding to an amount of a ranging depth within the structure associated with the second arrangement.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.