Hyperspectral Optical Imaging

For in vivo studies of small animals, molecular imaging using optical wavelength photons is possible due to the short path length through the animal and the relatively favorable absorbing and scattering properties of tissue for near infrared (NIR, 650-950 nm) light. Optical imaging systems can make use of either bioluminescent or fluorescent reporters. Our research is directed towards using spectral information in three-dimensional tomographic reconstruction of optical imaging data, particularly as a measure of source depth. The optical properties of tissue exhibit a wavelength dependence, since for NIR light, shorter wavelengths are more strongly absorbed than longer wavelengths. We are working to build a flexible hyperspectral fluorescence optical imaging system that will be used to study various configurations for image acquisition and let us study reconstruction algorithms for realistic geometries. (See Phys Med Biol 2006; 51: 2029-2043.)

[prototype setup]
Prototype hyperspectral optical imaging setup, including
cooled CCD camera with optical elements mounted onto it.

[spectra]
Depth dependence (in tissue phantom) of emission spectra.