Axial illumination for capillary electrophoresis

A system for analyzing a biological sample, comprising:

• a light source configured to provide excitation light;
• a housing configured to contain a biological sample and to receive the excitation light from the light source, the housing comprising a material having a first index of refraction;
• at least one NA enhancing optical element comprising a material having a second index of refraction that is greater than the first refractive index, the NA enhancing optical element configured to receive and pass an emission of fluorescent light from the biological sample when the biological sample is located within the housing;
• a mask comprising at least one aperture adapted to reduce cross-talk of fluorescent light from the samples;
• and
• a translation mechanism configured to move at least one of the NA enhancing optical element, the housing, or the mask.

A system for analyzing a biological sample, comprising:

• a light source configured to provide excitation light;
• a housing configured to contain a biological sample and to receive the excitation light from the light source, the housing comprising a material having a first index of refraction, the housing comprising at least one of a plurality of capillaries, a plurality of channels, a plurality of wells in a multi-well tray, or a plurality of chambers in a microcard;
• and
• at least one NA enhancing optical element comprising a material having a second index of refraction that is greater than the first refractive index, the NA enhancing optical element configured to receive and pass an emission from the biological sample when the biological sample is located within the housing.