Hign Performance MEMS Deformable Mirror for Adaptive Optics Retinal Imaging

描述（由申请人提供）：Iris AO正在开发能够实现体内细胞水平视网膜成像的令人兴奋的技术。Iris AO开发的尖端自适应光学（AO）系统将视网膜图像的轴向和横向分辨率提高了5倍。AO用于校正眼睛中的光学像差，该光学像差大大降低了传统视网膜图像的分辨率。可变形镜（DM）是自适应光学系统中的使能元件，通过改变形状来补偿像差。该阶段II SBIR致力于为临床视网膜成像系统构建先进的微机电系统（MEMS）DM。具有AO的成像系统存在于世界各地的少数尖端研究实验室中。在所有这些系统中，最具限制性的方面是DM。这些系统使用最初为望远镜或其他应用设计的DM，因为这些都是可用的。SBIR将把专门为视网膜成像设计的DM带到研究人员手中，然后进入临床视网膜成像系统。开发临床可用的DM将为普通人群带来这些先进成像技术的好处。Iris AO从DM制造到构建AO视网膜成像系统的全面专业知识，用于在细胞水平上研究视网膜疾病的日常使用，将推动先进成像技术的革命。通过将AO从实验室带到临床环境中，这项技术将带来深远的好处。Iris AO的目标与NEI的使命相似，即更好地了解视觉功能和对抗使人衰弱的眼病。Iris AO工程师通过以AO提供的前所未有的分辨率观察视网膜，帮助早期疾病检测的先驱研究。该提案通过开发AO系统中的关键组件直接满足NEI国家计划中规定的目标，该组件将用于AO装备的SLO和OCT系统。这项研究将开发DM超过两个迭代，细化制造的每一步。有限元分析、性能测试和故障研究将纳入设计中，以创建坚固的镜子。开发将集中在临床上有价值的镜子，通过满足所需的校正性能和解决必要的实际问题，使AO进入临床设置。在制造完成并在AO测试台上进行测试后，它将被集成到现有的AO视网膜成像系统中，以成像光感受器。这种令人兴奋的高性能技术将使细胞结构的体内成像能够在普通大众身上完成，而不是像今天这样精心挑选的研究对象。这项SBIR的研究将为早期视网膜疾病检测和更好地了解视觉功能提供一个强大的新工具。由此产生的技术将在细胞水平上观察视网膜的能力交给了临床医生，从而使他们能够在衰弱性损伤发生之前看到视网膜疾病的开始。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Iris AO is developing exciting technologies that enable in vivo cellular-level retinal imaging. The cutting-edge adaptive-optics (AO) systems Iris AO develops increases the axial and transverse resolution of retinal images 5 fold. AO is used to correct for the optical aberrations in the eye that drastically reduce the resolution of conventional retinal images. Deformable mirrors (DM), the enabling component in AO systems, correct aberration by changing shape to compensate for the aberrations. This Phase II SBIR is dedicated to building advanced Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) DMs for clinical retinal-imaging systems. Imaging systems with AO exist in but a few cutting edge research laboratories throughout the world. In all of these systems, the most limiting aspect is the DM. These systems use DMs originally designed for telescopes or other applications because these are all that are available. This SBIR will bring DMs specifically designed for retinal imaging into the hands of researchers and then into clinical retinal imaging systems. Developing clinical-ready DMs will bring the benefits of these advanced imaging techniques to the general population. Iris AO's comprehensive expertise from DM manufacturing to building AO retinal-imaging systems for daily use in studying retinal diseases at the cellular-level will drive a revolution in advanced imaging techniques. By bringing AO out of the lab and into the clinical setting, this technology will have profound benefits. Iris AO's goals parallel the NEI mission of gaining a better understanding of visual function and fighting debilitating eye diseases. Iris AO engineers have helped pioneer studies in early disease detection by looking at the retina with the unprecedented resolution afforded by AO. This proposal directly meets objectives laid out in the NEI National Plan by developing a critical component in AO systems that will be used in AO-equipped SLO and OCT systems. This research will develop the DM over two iterations, refining the manufacturing each step of the way. Finite element analysis, performance testing, and failure studies will feed into the design to create robust mirrors. The development will focus on clinically valuable mirrors by meeting the required correction performance and solving practical issues necessary to bring AO into the clinical setting. After the mirror is built and tested in an AO test bed, it will be integrated into an existing AO retinal imaging system to image photoreceptors. This exciting high-performance technology will enable in vivo imaging of cellular structure to be done on the general populace instead of hand-picked research subjects as is the practice today. Research from this SBIR will enable a powerful new tool for early retinal disease detection and better understanding of visual function. The resulting technology puts the ability to observe into the retina at the cellular level into the hands of clinicians, thereby allowing them to see the start of a retinal disease before debilitating damage has been done.