Intensified gated camera for fluorescence lifetime imaging

荧光显微镜是凝聚态物理、光学工程、无机和分子化学、生命科学和医学成像领域的多用途、跨学科研究工具。多功能、集成和跨学科的荧光显微镜系统的关键组件包括高质量的光学显微镜、激光激发源、彩色荧光相机和光谱测量系统。自荧光显微镜投入使用以来的五年中，它几乎一直在使用，大约有30名学生和PDF接受了荧光检测，成像和分析技术的培训，而不需要专门的技术支持人员。学生们已经为LED器件测试，光纤锥形，微腔荧光传感器，微流体和倏逝波耦合设置建立了可移动的阶段;尽管如此复杂，它们可以在几分钟内被移除和更换。然而，经过几年的运作，我们现在面临着特别需要荧光寿命成像的项目。不幸的是，FML没有任何动态光谱或成像能力。在几纳秒内进行终身成像的能力，将为如此多令人兴奋的新科学打开大门，并回答我们在5年前只能梦想的问题，从硅基LED和光源，有机材料和半导体器件中电荷运动的可视化，以及微腔荧光和腔衰荡成像（一种与化学和生物传感技术直接相关的技术）。

Fluorescence microscopy is a multi-purpose, interdisciplinary research tool in condensed matter physics, optical engineering, inorganic and molecular chemistry, the life sciences, and medical imaging. The key components of a versatile, integrated, and interdisciplinary fluorescence microscopy system include a high-quality optical microscope, laser excitation sources, color fluorescence cameras, and spectroscopic measurement systems. In the five years since the fluorescence Microscopy has been operational, it has been used almost continuously, with approximately 30 students and PDFs having been trained in the techniques of fluorescence detection, imaging, and analysis, without requiring specialized technical support staff. Students have built removable stages for LED device testing, optical fiber-tapering, microcavity fluorescence sensors, microfluidics, and evanescent coupling setups; despite this complexity, they can be removed and replaced within minutes. However, after several years of operation, we are now faced with projects that specifically require fluorescence lifetime imaging. Unfortunately, the FML does not have any dynamical spectroscopy or imaging capabilities. The ability to perform lifetime imaging, gated at a few nanoseconds, will opening the door to so much exciting new science and is answering questions that we could only dream of asking as recently as 5 years ago, in areas ranging from silicon-based LEDs and light sources, visualization of the movement of electric charges in organic materials and semiconductor devices, and microcavity fluorescence and cavity ring-down imaging (a technique that is directly related to chemical and biological sensing technologies).