Biomedical applications of mid-infrared quantum cascade lasers - a review

Mid-infrared spectroscopy has been applied to research in biology and medicine for more than 20 years and conceivable applications have been identified. More recently, these applications have been shown to benefit from the use of quantum cascade lasers due to their specific properties, namely high spectral power density, small beam parameter product, narrow emission spectrum and, if needed, tuning capabilities. This review provides an overview of the achievements and illustrates some applications which benefit from the key characteristics of quantum cascade laser-based mid-infrared spectroscopy using examples such as breath analysis, the investigation of serum, non-invasive glucose monitoring in bulk tissue and the combination of spectroscopy and microscopy of tissue thin sections for rapid histopathology.