We propose a compact, self-aligned, low-cost, and versatile infrared diffuse-reflectance laser imaging system using a laser feedback interferometry technique with possible applications in in vivo biological tissue imaging and skin cancer detection. We examine the proposed technique experimentally using a three-layer agar skin phantom. A cylindrical region with a scattering rate lower than that of the surrounding normal tissue was used as a model for a non-melanoma skin tumour. The same structure was implemented in a Monte Carlo computational model. The experimental results agree well with the Monte Carlo simulations validating the theoretical basis of the technique. Results prove the applicability of the proposed technique for biological tissue imaging, with the capability of depth sectioning and a penetration depth of well over 1.2 mm into the skin phantom.

Date Published: 27 April 2016
PDF: 11 pages
Proc. SPIE 9887, Biophotonics: Photonic Solutions for Better Health Care V, 98870T (27 April 2016); doi: 10.1117/12.2227449

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 9887:
Biophotonics: Photonic Solutions for Better Health Care V
Jürgen Popp; Valery V. Tuchin; Dennis L. Matthews; Francesco Saverio Pavone, Editor(s)