Epi-illumination optical design for fluorescence polarization measurements in flow systems

An epi-illumination design for fluorescence polarization measurements is introduced in flow cytometry with the optical axis orthogonally aligned to the cell stream. Various optical components and designs are discussed with respect to their influence on polarization measurements. Using the epi-configuration, paired measurements with the direction of polarization of the exciting light changed orthogonally are proposed for the compensation of system anisotropies and electronic mismatch. Large aperture corrections are employed for the excitation as well as for the emission pathway. Additional parameters such as fluorescence at 90 degrees, multiangle light scattering, and high precision cell-sizing by internally calibrated time of the flight measurements, as described previously, remain available with the design proposed here. Fluorescent latex microspheres, stained intracellular DNA, and algae have been used to test performance.