A method for optical detection of residual soil on articles (such as medical instruments and equipment), after completion of a washing or a rinsing operation by a washer. A soil detection system provides an indication of soil on the articles by detecting luminescent radiation emanating from the soil in the presence of ambient light.

Surface sensing methods for imaging a scanned surface of a sample via sum-frequency vibrational spectroscopy are disclosed herein. The methods include exposing a sampled location of the scanned surface to a visible light beam and exposing the sampled location to a tunable infrared beam such that the tunable infrared beam is at least partially coincident with the visible light beam. The methods also include varying a frequency of the tunable infrared beam an inducing optical resonance within an imaged structure that extends at least partially within the sampled location. The methods further include receiving at least a portion of an emitted light beam from the sampled location and scanning the visible light beam and the runnable infrared beam across the scanned portion of the scanned surface. The methods also include generating an image of the scanned portion of the scanned surface based upon the receiving and the scanning.

Multifocal photoacoustic imaging systems and methods that implement an ergodic relay to encode photoacoustic signals detected from a plurality of illuminated optical foci regions.

An optical assembly for an analyzer instrument for analysis of elemental composition of a sample using optical emission spectroscopy includes: an exciter generating an excitation focused at a target position to produce optical emission from the sample; and an optical arrangement including a light collection arrangement transferring the optical emission from the target position to a detector assembly's detector interface. The light collection arrangement includes: an off-axis parabolic light collecting mirror including an aperture, a lens arrangement including converging and diverging axicon lens portions, the lens arrangement positioned so its optical axis is parallel to that of the light collecting mirror and intersects a surface of the light collecting mirror at the aperture, and an off-axis parabolic focusing mirror having its focal point at the detector interface, the optical axis of the lens arrangement being parallel to that of the focusing mirror and intersects the focusing mirror's surface.

Surface sensing methods for imaging a scanned surface of a sample via sum-frequency vibrational spectroscopy are disclosed herein. The methods include exposing a sampled location of the scanned surface to a visible light beam and exposing the sampled location to a tunable infrared beam such that the tunable infrared beam is at least partially coincident with the visible light beam. The methods also include varying a frequency of the tunable infrared beam an inducing optical resonance within an imaged structure that extends at least partially within the sampled location. The methods further include receiving at least a portion of an emitted light beam from the sampled location and scanning the visible light beam and the runnable infrared beam across the scanned portion of the scanned surface. The methods also include generating an image of the scanned portion of the scanned surface based upon the receiving and the scanning.

A method for multi-spectral scattering-matrix tomography includes a step of splitting an input light signal into an incident light signal and a reference light signal. The sample light signal is directed to a sample in either a reflection configuration or a transmission configuration such that an output light signal includes light scattered from or transmitted through the sample. The incident signal and the reference light signal are directed to a camera angled to allow for amplitude and phase to be calculated by off-axis holography. A total light signal is measured with a camera that is a coherent sum of the reference light signal and the output signal. The total light signal for each light frequency and each incident angle are collected as collected total light signal data. A computing device derives an image of the sample from a calculated reflection matrix or transmission matrix or both of them.

A high-speed device, for inspecting a large area of an object, which includes: a terahertz wave generation portion configured to generate a terahertz wave; a ring beam forming portion configured to form a ring beam by using the terahertz wave incident from the terahertz wave generation portion; a rotary mirror configured to reflect the ring beam formed by the ring beam forming portion while rotating to allow the ring beam to be incident on an inspection target object; and a detector configured to detect a ring beam generated from the inspection target object.

A detection system and a portable detection device for detecting an object of interest in a lateral flow immunoassay strip. The lateral flow immunoassay strip has a detection carrier and a reporter, the detection carrier has a control zone and a test zone. The detection system has a laser light source, a scanning and spatial modulation module, a signal acquisition assembly, and a processing device. The laser light source provides a laser light. The scanning and spatial modulation module receives the laser light, and then provides a scanning and spatially modulating laser beam for irradiating a lateral flow immunoassay strip to generate a detecting signal. The signal acquisition assembly receives the detecting signal. The processing device electronic connects to the signal acquisition assembly and receives the detecting signal from the signal acquisition assembly.

Disclosed are apparatus, kits, methods, and systems that include a radiation source configured to direct radiation to a sample; a detector configured to measure radiation from the sample; an electronic processor configured to determine information about the sample based on the measured radiation; a housing enclosing the source, the detector, and the electronic processor, the housing having a hand-held form factor; an arm configured to maintain a separation between the sample and the housing, the arm including a first end configured to connect to the housing and a second end configured to contact the sample; and a layer positioned on the second end of the arm, the layer being configured to contact the sample and to transmit at least a portion of the radiation from the sample to the detector.

An analyzer of a component in a sample fluid includes an optical source and an optical detector defining a beam path of a beam, wherein the optical source emits the beam and the optical detector measures the beam after partial absorption by the sample fluid, a fluid flow cell disposed on the beam path defining an interrogation region in the a fluid flow cell in which the optical beam interacts with the sample fluid and a reference fluid; and wherein the sample fluid and the reference fluid are in laminar flow, and a scanning system that scans the beam relative to the laminar flow within the fluid flow cell, wherein the scanning system scans the beam relative to both the sample fluid and the reference fluid.