We present an optical vibrometer based on delay-encoded, dual-beamlet phase-sensitive Fourier domain interferometric system to provide depth-resolved subnanometer scale vibration information from scattering biological specimens. System characterization, calibration, and preliminary vibrometry with biological specimens were performed. The proposed system has the potential to provide both amplitude and direction of vibration of tissue microstructures on a single two-dimensional plane.

Imaging methods such as optical coherence tomography (OCT), confocal reflectance/ fluorescence microscopy, second-harmonic generation microscopy, and 2-photon microscopy are limited by the optical scattering properties of the skin to superficial depths. Optical clearing technique using high refractive index and hyperosmolarity agents can reduce the scattering of biological tissues. With this approach, better optical imaging depth and contrast have been presented and deeper optical treatment has been achieved. However, noninvasive optical clearing of skin in vivo is difficult, because the outermost layer of the skin, the stratum corneum, presents a significant barrier to topically applied OCAs. In this work, OCT imaging ...

Hearing loss is the most frequent sensory deficit in the human population, affecting more than 250 million people in the world. The National Center for Health Statistics estimates that 37 million adults (17%) in the United States have hearing difficulty. Analysis of a large database of audiometric records from the University of Minnesota reveals that 39% of patients diagnosed with hearing loss have conductive hearing loss (CHL) either alone (15%) or in combination with SNHL (24%). There are several contemporary audiological tests that are commonly used to diagnose middle ear function for CHL. However, these contemporary tests of middle ear ...

The strong optical scattering of skin tissue makes it very difficult for optical coherence tomography (OCT) to achieve deep imaging in skin. Significant optical clearing of in vivo rat skin sites was achieved within 15 min by topical application of an optical clearing agent PEG-400, a chemical enhancer (thiazone or propanediol), and physical massage. Only when all three components were applied together could a 15 min treatment achieve a three fold increase in the OCT reflectance from a 300 μm depth and 31% enhancement in image depth Zthreshold.

A multidisciplinary research groups spanning several countries (USA, China, Sweden) are using optical coherence tomography (OCT) to investigate minute changes in hair cells within the cochlea - the auditory portion of the inner ear. Below is a summary of their work. Mammalian hearing is refined by amplification of the sound-evoked vibration of the cochlear partition. This amplification is at least partly due to forces produced by protein motors residing in the cylindrical body of the outer hair cell. To transmit power to the cochlear partition, it is required that the outer hair cells dynamically change their length, in addition to generating ...

We describe a novel method for the detection of the tiny motions of the middle ear (ME) ossicles and their morphological features with a spectral-domain phase sensitive optical coherence tomography (PS-OCT). Laser Doppler Vibrometry (LDV) and its variations are the most extensively used methods for studding the vibrational modes of the ME. However, most techniques are limited to single point analysis methods, and do not have the ability to provide depth resolved simultaneous imaging of multiple points on the ossicles especially with the intact eardrum. Consequently, the methods have the limited ability to provide relative vibration information at these points ...

Direct measurement of absolute vibration parameters from different locations within the mammalian organ of Corti is crucial for understanding the hearing mechanics such as how sound propagates through the cochlea and how sound stimulates the vibration of various structures of the cochlea, namely, basilar membrane (BM), recticular lamina, outer hair cells and tectorial membrane (TM). In this study we demonstrate the feasibility a modified phase-sensitive spectral domain optical coherence tomography system to provide subnanometer scale vibration information from multiple angles within the imaging beam. The system has the potential to provide depth resolved absolute vibration measurement of tissue microstructures from ...

Measuring the sound stimulated vibration from various structures in the organ of Corti is important in understanding how the small vibrations are amplified and detected. In this study we examine the feasibility of using phase-sensitive Fourier domain optical coherence tomography (PSFD-OCT) to measure vibration of the cellular structures of the organ of Corti. PSFD-OCT is a low coherence interferrometry system where the interferrogram is detected as a function of wavelength. The phase of the Fourier transformation of the detected spectra contains path deference (between the sample arm and the reference arm) information of the interferometer. In PSFD-OCT this phase is ...

The ear is a remarkably sensitive pressure fluctuation detector. In guinea pigs, behavioral measurements indicate a minimum detectable sound pressure of ~20 μPa at 16 kHz. Such faint sounds produce 0.1-nm basilar membrane displacements, a distance smaller than conformational transitions in ion channels. It seems that noise within the auditory system would swamp such tiny motions, making weak sounds imperceptible. Here we propose a new mechanism contributing to a resolution of this problem and validate it through direct measurement. We hypothesized that vibration at the apical side of hair cells is enhanced compared with that at the commonly measured ...