Spectrally sparse optical coherence tomography

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Optics
• Optical Engineering
• Signal Processing

Background:

• Swept-source optical coherence tomography (OCT) traditionally requires expensive lasers, limiting its widespread adoption.
• High costs associated with specialized swept-source lasers hinder the exploration of OCT in novel applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a cost-effective spectrally sparse OCT system.
• To achieve high-resolution distance estimation and imaging using affordable components.

Main Methods:

• Utilized randomly spaced, low-bandwidth optical chirps for spectrally sparse OCT.
• Implemented a stepped chirp approach with 23% bandwidth occupancy for distance estimation.
• Evaluated performance on metallic targets in sparse scenes.

Main Results:

• Achieved micron-scale distance estimation accuracy.
• Demonstrated a resolution of 40 μm at imaging distances over 10 cm.
• Verified comparable performance to full-bandwidth OCT for sparse metallic targets.

Conclusions:

• Spectrally sparse OCT with low-bandwidth chirps offers a viable low-cost alternative to traditional OCT.
• This approach expands the potential applications of OCT by reducing hardware costs.
• The demonstrated system provides high accuracy and resolution suitable for various imaging tasks.