Ultrasensitive all-optical scanner for biomedical photoacoustic tomography and acoustic metrology

• Applicant: Professor Jan Laufer, Ph.D.
• Subject Area: Medical Physics, Biomedical Technology
• Term: since 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 516147140

Biomedical photoacoustic (PA) imaging is a hybrid technique that combines the strong absorption-based contrast with the high spatial resolution of ultrasound to enable functional and molecular imaging. PA tomography, in particular, has been shown to bridge the gap between the microscopic and macroscopic imaging capabilities of more established modalities. A critical goal in the development of this technology are further improvements in image penetration depth, contrast, and frame rate whilst maintaining high spatial resolution. The most promising route to achieving these goals is the development of new acoustic detection technologies that provide greater detection sensitivity. In this project, an all-optical tomograph based on a large aperture Fabry-Pérot etalon will be developed. Using adaptive optics and camera-based detection, this approach has the potential to achieve ultrahigh sensitivity whilst maintaining all advantageous attributes of all-optical ultrasound detection, such as small element sizes and broad frequency response for high spatial resolution, omnidirectional response, and parallelised signal acquisition for high frame rates.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants