Combined optical and mechanical scanning in optical-resolution photoacoustic microscopy

Combined optical and mechanical scanning (COMS) in optical-resolution photoacoustic microscopy (OR-PAM) has provided five scanning modes with fast imaging speed and wide field of view (FOV). With two-dimensional (2D) galvanometer-based optical scanning, we have achieved a 2 KHz B-scan rate and 50 Hz volumetric-scan rate, which enables real-time tracking of cell activities in vivo. With optical-mechanical hybrid 2D scanning, we are able to image a wide FOV (10x8 mm(2)) within 150 seconds, which is 20 times faster than the conventional mechanical scan in our second-generation OR-PAM. With three-dimensional mechanical-based contour scanning, we can maintain the optimal signal-to-noise ratio and spatial resolution of OR-PAM while imaging objects with uneven surfaces, which is ideal for fast and quantitative studies of tumors and the brain.