SBIR Phase II: Laser-Based Replacement for FTIR Microscopy

这个小型企业创新研究（SBIR）二期项目将充分发挥用于医疗诊断的新型量子级联激光（QCL）红外显微镜的潜力。红外显微镜可以在不染色的情况下进行组织鉴定，有可能对癌症等疾病进行快速的原位诊断。目前基于傅里叶变换红外（FTIR）光谱仪和冷却探测器的红外显微镜成本高，图像采集速度慢，限制了其在标准医疗诊所环境中的应用。新的QCL技术使紧凑，广泛可调的激光光源成为现实中红外区域（3至12微米），这些显微镜的操作。这些激光器的高功率也使得使用灵敏度较低（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，使用像qcl这样的相干光源，显微镜和成像确实是可能的。qcl的快速调谐和高强度的性能增强将以前所未有的速度通过红外组织分析进行癌症筛查。该提案的智力价值在于基于这项新技术创造出一种有用的产品，有利于癌症研究人员和医学诊断。这个项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力是，可以开发出性能增强、成本降低的红外显微镜，并将其用于诊所一级的医疗诊断。最近的研究表明，红外显微镜提供了必要的分辨率和组织识别能力，用于癌症筛查的自动算法。尽管这种潜在的用途，红外显微镜一直局限于选定的实验室。这在一定程度上是由于现有的FTIR技术不能减小尺寸和成本，也不能提高采集速度和分辨率，而这是使红外显微镜成为常用分析技术所必需的。第二阶段建造的QCL显微镜将彻底改变红外显微镜仪器。根据第一阶段所展示的组件的性能，估计筛选组织阵列的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，并将有助于推动该技术在临床环境和自动化系统中的广泛采用，以帮助快速筛查疾病。

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.