Rapid multiexcitation fluorescence spectroscopy system for in vivo tissue diagnosis

We have designed, fabricated, and tested a compact, transportable, excitation-emission spectrofluorimeter with optical-fiber light delivery and collection for use in rapid analysis of tissues in a clinical setting. This system provides up to eleven different excitation wavelengths, permitting collection of all the corresponding emission spectra in approximately 600 ms. It uses a N(2) laser that pumps a sequence of dyes placed in cuvettes on a rotating wheel. A white-light excitation source permits acquisition of the tissue's diffuse reflectance spectrum on each cycle. Return fluorescence and reflected light are dispersed by a small spectrograph and detected by a photodiode-array detector. The system can collect a single-shot spectrum from biological tissue with a signal-to-noise ratio in excess of 50:1.