Simultaneous photoacoustic and optically mediated ultrasound microscopy: phantom study

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Optics
• Acoustic Imaging
• Microscopy Techniques

Background:

• Photoacoustic (PA) and ultrasound (US) microscopy offer complementary imaging contrast.
• Combining PA and US modalities can provide richer information for biological samples.
• Existing combined systems may have limitations in terms of complexity or resolution.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a novel experimental setup for combined photoacoustic and optically mediated ultrasound microscopy.
• To demonstrate the capability of the system for simultaneous PA and US data acquisition.
• To evaluate the performance of the system for imaging biological tissues.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a spherically focused 35 MHz polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) ultrasonic detector.
• Employed a fiber-optic system for delivering laser excitation pulses.
• Generated probing US pulses thermoelastically using a single optical pulse for both PA and US A-scans.

Main Results:

• Achieved simultaneous PA and US imaging with a single optical pulse.
• Demonstrated imaging capability up to a 3 mm depth.
• The system utilized a PVDF detector with specific acoustic and optical properties.

Conclusions:

• The presented experimental setup enables efficient combined photoacoustic and optically mediated ultrasound microscopy.
• This integrated approach offers potential for advanced biomedical imaging applications.
• The system's design facilitates simultaneous data acquisition, simplifying complex imaging procedures.