Implementing swept, confocally aligned planar excitation (SCAPE) imaging with asymmetric magnification in the detection arm provides a number of significant advantages. In some preferred embodiments, the asymmetric magnification is achieved using cylindrical lenses in the detection arm that are oriented to increase the magnification of the intermediate image in the width direction but not in the depth direction. SCAPE imaging may also be improved by using an SLM to modify a characteristic of the sheet of excitation light that is projected into the sample. Additional embodiments include a customized version of SCAPE that is optimized for imaging the retina at the back of an eyeball in living subjects.

In the scanning molecule counting method using optical measurement with a confocal or multiphoton microscope, there is provided a technique of computing a light-emitting particle concentration which changes with time and detecting a concentration change velocity or a reaction velocity. The inventive optical analysis technique of detecting light of light-emitting particles in a sample solution generates time series light intensity data of light from a light detection region detected with moving the position of the light detection region of the microscope in the sample solution; measures successively an interval of generation times of signals of the light-emitting particles detected in the time series light intensity data; and determines the concentration or concentration change velocity of the light-emitting particles, using the successively measured signal generation time intervals.

A scanning apparatus includes a light source, a spatial light modulator that modulates an incident beam of light on a first reflection surface, an illumination lens that irradiates the spatial light modulator with a beam of light from the light source and that refracts a principal ray of a beam of light modulated by the spatial light modulator so that an angle between the principal ray and an optical axis of the illumination lens decreases, and a first reflector that directs, toward the illumination lens, a beam of light by reflecting the beam of light multiple times between the illumination lens and a front focal plane of the illumination lens, the beam of light being modulated by the spatial light modulator and entering through the illumination lens.

A light-scanning microscope including a scan optics for generating a pupil plane conjugate to the pupil plane of the microscope objective, and a variably adjustable beam deflection unit in the conjugate pupil plane. An intermediate image lies between the microscope objective and the scan optics. The scan optics image a second intermediate image (Zb2) into the first intermediate image via the beam deflection unit, wherein the second intermediate image is spatially curved. The deflection unit is not arranged in a collimated section of the beam path, but is instead arranged in a convergent section. Then, in terms of the optical properties and quality thereof, the scan optics needs rather to correspond merely to an eyepiece instead of a conventional scanner objective.

A microscopy system that includes a first laser emitting a first laser pulse along a first beam line, the first laser pulse being a Gaussian pump beam; and a second laser emitting a second laser pulse along a second beam line, the second laser pulse being a probe beam, the Gaussian pump beam and the probe beam being delivered to a sample at right angles to each other allowing the Gaussian pump beam to shrink a focal axial diameter of the second beam line thereby enabling dipole-like backscatter stimulated emission along the second beam line.

Provided is a system for observing an object that emits fluorescence when irradiated with excitation light. The system includes: a hole unit having holes on a plane perpendicular to an optical axis of the objective lens to allow the excitation light to pass through the holes in a direction parallel to the optical axis; and an imaging unit including: an imaging lens configured to focus the fluorescence; a microlens array having microlenses arranged on a plane perpendicular to an optical axis of the imaging lens; and an image sensor having pixels configured to: receive the fluorescence via the objective lens, at least one of the holes, and the microlens array, the fluorescence being emitted when the object is irradiated with the excitation light having passed through at least one of the holes and the objective lens; and output an image signal in accordance with an intensity of the received fluorescence.

The present disclosure concerns a method and system for imaging a molecular strand (MS). The method comprises providing a sample volume (SV) comprising the strand (MS); providing an excitation beam (EB) having an excitation focus (EF) in the sample volume (SV); scanning the excitation focus (EF) in the sample volume (SV) along a one dimensional scanning line (SL); trapping an end of the strand (MS) in the sample volume (SV) and extending the strand (MS) along a one-dimensional trapping line (LL) parallel to the scanning line (SL); aligning the trapping line (LL) to coincide with the scanning line (SL) to have the scanning excitation focus (EF) coincide with the strand (MS); and recording the fluorescence response (FR) as a function of a plurality of distinct scanning positions (X0) of the excitation focus (EF) along the scanning line (SL).

The present invention provides a light-field microscope including: an illumination optical system that radiates excitation light onto a sample; and a detection optical system including an objective lens that collects fluorescence generated in the sample as a result of the sample being irradiated with the excitation light by the illumination optical system, an image-acquisition element that acquires an image of the fluorescence collected by the objective lens, and a microlens array disposed between the image-acquisition element and the objective lens. The illumination optical system radiates a beam of the excitation light having a predetermined width in the optical-axis direction of the objective lens so as to include the focal plane of the objective lens onto the sample in a direction substantially perpendicular to the optical axis.

The invention is directed to an optical scanning device with two scanning mirrors and with optical elements for imaging the two scanning mirrors one onto the other by means of an intermediate image. A control unit is provided for supplying drives which are coupled to the scanning mirrors with excitation voltages or excitation currents to initiate deflection angles ranging from zero to the maximum possible deflection angle for the two scanning mirrors. At least one of the scanning mirrors is designed for biaxial scanning, and the control unit is designed to vary the driving of the two scanning mirrors with respect to biaxial or uniaxial deflection of the beam bundle electively in quasistatic or resonant mode of operation. At least one of the two scanning mirrors is preferably designed as MEMS assembly.

A resolution enhancement technique for a line scanning confocal microscopy system that generates vertical and horizontal line scanning patterns onto a sample is disclosed. The line scanning confocal microscopy system is capable of producing line scanning patterns through the use of two alternative pathways that generate either the vertical line scanning pattern or horizontal line scanning pattern.