Developing in vivo Functional Imaging Technology with Micron-Scale Resolution Using Optical Coherence Tomography

Researchers and physicians rely on functional imaging to better understand tumors and other structures within the human body. However, imaging technologies that capture deep structures have poor resolution, while those that provide high resolution have limited depth. Positron emission tomography (PET), for example, reveals details deep within tissue but suffers from poor spatial resolution, with each voxel of a PET scan representing thousands or even millions of cells. In contrast, optical microscopy can deliver subcellular spatial resolution but is usually limited to a depth of tens of microns. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) helps bridge the gap between low-resolution/high-penetration and ...