by
Marcus T. Cicerone(National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg)
→
Europe/Rome
Aula Careri (Dipartimento di Fisica - Ed. G. Marconi)
Aula Careri
Dipartimento di Fisica - Ed. G. Marconi
Description
Raman spectroscopy is a powerful technique for label-free identification of chemical species within biological samples. It probes intrinsic molecular vibrational energy levels and has been used to noninvasively identify a variety of tissues types and pathologies. However, with typical spectral acquisition times of (0.1 to 10) s, spontaneous Raman scattering it is not a practically useful contrast mechanism for imaging. We have developed a coherent Raman imaging instrument based on broadband coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (BCARS) that provides an ! unprecedented combination of speed, sensitivity, and chemical selectivity. The system obtains Raman spectra > 1000 times faster than spontaneous Raman methods, making imaging quite practical. It gives signal over the full Raman spectrum of interest, including the typically weak Raman fingerprint region, which is important for chemical discrimination. I will discuss key technical features of the BCARS instrument we have developed, some applications, and prospects for the future.
