Localized thermal mapping using coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy

Coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) spectroscopy is explored as a tool for obtaining micro-scale thermal measurements. A single femtosecond oscillator is used to pump a photonic crystal fiber to provide the broadband Stokes pulse. The CARS signals from the broad OH-stretching modes between 3000 and 3600 cm(-1) are shown to correlate with temperature with an accuracy of ± 1°C for water and ± 1.5°C for phosphate-buffered saline. Local variation of temperature is mapped on a microscopic level, using black-dyed microspheres as thermal sources.