Compact, Field-Portable Lens-free Microscope using Superresolution Spatio-Spectral Light-field Fusion
Abstract
We present a compact, field-portable lens-free microscope based
on the principle of spatio-spectral light-field fusion. This is the first
time a device of this kind has been introduced whereby both superresolution
and signal-to-noise ratio are enhanced via the marriage
of synthetic aperture imaging and spectral light-field fusion
holography, culminating in a system that is self-contained and fieldportable
while achieving high resolution, contrast, strong signal fidelity,
and ultra-wide field-of-view. The active spatio-spectral illumination
is accomplished in the presented microscope by arranging
a series of pulsing LEDs emitting at different spectral wavelengths
in a specific spatial formation. To demonstrate the performance of
the presented microscope, the system was used to observe two
histology samples: a bovine lung, and corn stem. The imaging results
demonstrate the ultra-wide field-of-view advantage of the presented
microscope over any other system of its kind, thus enabling
for acquisition of the entire sample without the need for scanning,
while producing high-resolution, high-contrast microscopy images
(168 megapixels in the current system) that makes it well-suited for
scientific and clinical examinations.