Broadband stimulated Raman microscopy with 0.1  ms pixel acquisition time

Area of Science:

• Nonlinear optics
• Spectroscopy
• Microscopy

Background:

• Femtosecond stimulated Raman microscopy (FSRM) is a nonlinear optical technique.
• It enables rapid broadband Raman imaging.
• FSRM utilizes femtosecond probe pulses and narrow bandwidth pump pulses.

Purpose of the Study:

• To benchmark the performance of an FSRM setup.
• To demonstrate the capability of FSRM for rapid chemical mapping.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a femtosecond probe pulse and a narrow bandwidth pump pulse.
• Employed a fast (20 kHz) multi-channel detector for spectral acquisition.
• Recorded stimulated Raman spectra with acquisition times as short as 0.1 ms.

Main Results:

• Presented spectra of neat benzonitrile at various acquisition speeds.
• Generated chemical maps of a multi-phase polymer blend.
• Demonstrated FSRM's capability for high-speed chemical imaging.

Conclusions:

• The FSRM setup is capable of rapid spectral acquisition.
• FSRM is effective for high-speed chemical mapping of complex materials.