Ultra-high-resolution SD-OCM imaging with a compact polarization-aligned 840 nm broadband combined-SLED source
Richard Haindl, Marcus Duelk, Stefan Gloor, Jean Dahdah, Jose Ojeda, Caterina Sturtzel, Shiyu Deng, Abigail J. Deloria, Qian Li, Mengyang Liu, Martin Distel, Wolfgang Drexler, Rainer A. Leitgeb
Abstract
We analyze the influence of intrinsic polarization alignment on image quality and axial resolution employing a broadband 840 nm light source with an optical bandwidth of 160 nm and an output power of 12 mW tailored for spectral-domain optical coherence microscopy (SD-OCM) applications. Three superluminescent diodes (SLEDs) are integrated into a 14-pin butterfly module using a free-space micro-optical bench architecture, maintaining a constant polarization state across the full spectral output. We demonstrate superior imaging performance in comparison to traditionally coupled-SLED broadband light sources in a teleost model organism in-vivo .