Optical Coherence Tomography again has high impact in conferences at Photonics West 2016 in San Francisco:
Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) is a well-established technique for optical imaging that has proved very useful in characterizing samples of living tissue. It’s essentially equivalent to using ultrasound imaging but with light instead of sonic waves and with a resolution of up to 100 times higher than ultrasonic methods. OCT can provide images in vivo and in real time which makes it a powerful tool for medical diagnostics, for example in identifying and characterizing tumors.
The recent SPIE Photonics West 2016 Conference in San Francisco had more than 130 presentations and 50 posters related to Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), including an entire conference dedicated to it and several dedicated sessions in conferences about related subjects, such as Diagnostics and Endoscopic Microscopy. PhotonTransfer was present, not only at the conference, but also at the exhibition with great success. PhotonTransfer’s booth received a large number of visitors who stopped by to ask about photonics technologies and patents for transfer while drinking a cup of coffee from our Nespresso machine.
Optical Coherence Tomographies similar techniques:
A similar imaging technique is Angled Fluorescence Laminar Tomography which provides higher specificity than OCT at the cost of decreased sensitivity. However, researchers at Photonics West showed how a clever combination of the two methods can lead to an increase in both sensitivity and specificity.
A related imaging technique, also highlighted at Photonics West, is Multiple Reference Optical Coherence Tomography (MR-OCT) which even has the potential of imaging in vivo blood flow. Additionally, a compact, low-cost version of this novel technology can be implemented using the same optics typically used for CD/DVD pick-up-head technology and with a cost of less than $10. This will allow MR-OCT to be integrated into affordable portable devices, including smartphones, for point-of-care diagnostics and personal health care applications.