Revolutionizing Micro-Array Technologies: A Microscopy Method and System Incorporating Nanofeatures
Summary:
UCLA researchers in the Department of Electrical Engineering have developed a novel lensfree incoherent holographic microscope using a plasmonic aperture.
Background:
Lensfree imaging has gained interest due to the potential to eliminate bulky optical components and to develop on-chip microscope systems, which would be beneficial for microfluidic systems used in medical diagnostics and cytometry applications. A lightweight and compact, lensfree-imaging modality would also be a cheaper alternative to conventional lens-based microscopy, especially for telemedicine applications. Current imaging modalities that are compact, cost-effective, and easy to use either have poor performance or low resolution, limiting their practical use.
Innovation:
Researchers led by Professor Aydogan Ozcan have invented a novel lensless incoherent holographic microscope with a resolution of ~500 nm over a field of view (FOV) of ~5 mm2 and can achieve subcellular resolution over a large FOV of 24 mm2. This compact and lightweight microscope does not require any lenses, lasers, or other bulky optical and mechanical components and instead, utilizes a simple light emitting diode and a compact optoelectronic sensor-array.
Patent:
Microscopy method and system incorporating nanofeatures
Applications:
- On-chip microscopy
- Medical diagnostics
- Cytometry
- Telemedicine applications involving global health problems (i.e. malaria, TB, and HIV)
Advantages:
- Minimally trained personnel to operate
- Subcellular resolution with large FOV
- Compact, cheap, and lightweight
- Lensfree holographic imaging
- Does not need lenses, lasers, or bulky components
Related Publications:
- B. Khademhosseinieh, I. Sencan, G. Biener, T. W. Su, A. F. Coskun, D. Tseng, and A. Ozcan. Lensfree On-Chip Imaging using Nanostructured Surfaces. Appl. Phys. Lett. 2010.
- O. Mudanyali, D. Tseng, C. Oh, S. O. Isikman, I. Sencan, W. Bishara, C. Oztoprak, S. Seo, B. Khademhosseini, and A. Ozcan. Compact, Light-Weight and Cost-Effective Microscope based on Lensless Incoherent Holography for Telemedicine Applications. Lab Chip. 2010.