SBIR Phase II: Laser-Based Replacement for FTIR Microscopy

这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第二阶段项目将充分发挥新型量子级联激光器(QCL)红外显微镜用于医疗诊断的潜力。红外显微镜可以用于组织识别，而不需要染色，这可能使癌症等疾病的快速、原位诊断成为可能。目前基于傅里叶变换红外(FTIR)光谱仪和制冷探测器的红外显微镜成本高，图像采集速度慢，限制了它们在标准医疗临床环境中的应用。新的QCL技术使紧凑、可宽调谐的激光光源在中红外区域(3到12微米)成为现实，这些显微镜就是在那里工作的。这些激光器的高功率还使得使用灵敏度较低(且成本较低)的室温焦平面阵列进行图像采集成为可能。第一阶段的研究表明，像QCL这样的相干光源确实可以进行显微镜和成像。QCL的快速调谐和高强度带来的性能增强将允许以前所未有的速度通过红外组织分析进行癌症筛查。该提案的智力价值是基于这项新技术创造出一种有用的产品，使癌症研究人员和医疗诊断人员受益。该项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是，可以开发能力更强、成本更低的红外显微镜，并将其用于临床一级的医疗诊断。最近的研究表明，红外显微镜提供了用于癌症筛查的自动化算法所需的分辨率和组织识别能力。尽管有这种潜在的用处，但红外显微镜仅限于选定的实验室。这在一定程度上是因为现有的FTIR技术不允许减小尺寸和成本，也不能提高采集速度和分辨率，这是使红外显微镜成为一种常见分析技术所必需的。将在第二阶段建造的QCL显微镜将给红外显微镜仪器带来革命性的变化。根据第一阶段组件的表现，估计筛选组织阵列癌症迹象的时间将从使用FTIR显微镜的6天减少到使用QCL显微镜的仅3分钟。这种性能改变了红外显微镜的游戏规则，并将有助于推动这项技术在临床环境和帮助快速筛查疾病的自动化系统中更广泛地采用。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project will realize the full potential of a new quantum cascade laser (QCL) infrared microscope for medical diagnostics. Infrared microscopy can be used for tissue identification without staining, potentially allowing quick, in situ diagnostics for diseases such as cancer. Present infrared microscopes based on Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometers and cooled detectors have a high cost and slow image acquisition speed that limits their usefulness in standard medical clinic settings. New QCL technology makes compact, broadly tunable laser light sources a reality for the mid-infrared region (3 to 12 um) where these microscopes operate. The high power of these lasers also makes it possible to use less sensitive (and lower cost) room temperature focal plane arrays for image acquisition. The Phase I research demonstrated that microscopy and imaging are indeed possible with coherent light sources like QCLs. The performance enhancements available with the rapid tuning and high intensity of QCLs will allow cancer screening via infrared tissue analysis at unprecedented speeds. The intellectual merit in the proposal is to create a useful product based on this new technology that can benefit cancer researchers and medical diagnostics. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is that infrared microscopes with increased capabilities and reduced cost can be developed and made available for medical diagnostics at the clinic level. Recent research demonstrates that infrared microscopy offers the resolution and tissue identification capabilities necessary for it to be used in automated algorithms for cancer screening. In spite of this potential usefulness, infrared microscopy has been confined to select labs. This is in part due to existing FTIR technology that does not allow the reduction in size and cost, nor increase in acquisition speed and resolution, necessary to make infrared microscopy a common analytical technique. The QCL microscope to be built in Phase II will revolutionize infrared microscopy instrumentation. Based on demonstrated performance of components in Phase I, it is estimated that the time to screen a tissue array for signs of cancer will be reduced from six days with a FTIR microscope, to just three minutes with a QCL microscope. This kind of performance is a game-changer for infrared microscopy, and will help drive larger adoption of the technique in clinical settings, and in automated systems that aid in rapid screening for disease.