Endowing a plain fluidic chip with micro-optics: a holographic microscope slide.

Area of Science:

• Microfluidics and Optical Engineering
• Point-of-Care Diagnostics
• Digital Holography Microscopy

Background:

• Lab-on-a-Chip (LoC) devices offer promising point-of-care diagnostic capabilities.
• Current digital holography microscopy often requires complex, bulky interferometer setups, limiting its use outside laboratory environments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a portable, integrated holographic imaging system for point-of-care applications.
• To engineer a Lab-on-a-Chip device capable of performing digital holography microscopy without external optical components.

Main Methods:

• A commercial plastic chip was engineered with integrated micro-optics, including a diffraction grating and polymeric lenses.
• A single-beam, common-path interferometer was constructed directly on the microfluidic chip.
• The device was tested for label-free imaging and quantitative phase contrast mapping of live samples.

Main Results:

• The pocket holographic slide successfully enabled digital holography microscopy without a traditional interferometer setup.
• The integrated system demonstrated robustness against vibrations and allowed for flexible refocusing.
• Label-free imaging and quantitative phase contrast mapping of live samples were achieved in a single shot.

Conclusions:

• The developed pocket holographic slide effectively moves the complexity of holographic imaging from external apparatus to the microfluidic chip.
• This innovation facilitates the deployment of advanced holographic microscopy for point-of-care diagnostics and analysis of liquid volumes.