Single-shot differential phase contrast microscopy using ring-shaped polarisation multiplexing illumination

• Published in: Journal of microscopy (Oxford) Vol. 295; no. 3; pp. 257 - 265
• Main Authors: Wang, Shengping, Ma, Yifu, Xie, Mengyuan, Yao, Manhong, Zhang, Zibang, Zhong, Jingang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.09.2024
• Subjects: Biological properties; Demultiplexing; Distortion; Illumination; Image acquisition; Image contrast; In vitro methods and tests; Microscopy; Multiplexing; Phase contrast; Polarization; single‐shot imaging; ring‐shaped illumination; differential phase contrast microscopy; polarisation multiplexing
• ISSN: 0022-2720; 1365-2818; 1365-2818
• DOI: 10.1111/jmi.13309

We propose a differential phase contrast microscopy that enables single-shot phase imaging for unstained biological samples. The proposed approach employs a ring-shaped LED array for polarisation multiplexing illumination and a polarisation camera for image acquisition. As such, multiple images of different polarisation angles can be simultaneously captured with a single shot. Through polarisation demultiplexing, the sample phase can therefore be recovered from the single-shot measurement. Both simulations and experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of the approach. We also demonstrate that ring-shaped illumination enables higher contrast and lower-distortion imaging results than disk-shaped illumination does. The proposed single-shot approach potentially enables phase contrast imaging for live cell samples in vitro. Lay Description: We propose a microscopy that enables imaging of transparent samples, unstained cells, etc. We demonstrate that the proposed method enables higher contrast and lower-distortion imaging results than conventional methods, and significantly improves imaging efficiency. The proposed method potentially enables dynamic imaging for live cell samples in vitro.