Fourier domain mode locked (FDML) lasers provide high sweep rates, broad tuning ranges, and high output powers for optical coherence tomography (OCT) systems. However, presently-known FDML lasers at 1300 nm have relatively short coherence lengths, limiting the size of samples that can be imaged. Furthermore, FDML lasers produce only one useable sweep direction. We report FDML coherence length extension by incorporating advanced dispersion compensation modules (DCMs). DCMs eliminate group velocity dispersion in the cavity, doubling coherence lengths and ensuring uniform axial resolution over the imaging range. Additionally, forward and backward sweeps are nearly identical, removing the need for external buffering stages.

Date Published: 7 February 2012
PDF: 4 pages
Proc. SPIE 8213, Optical Coherence Tomography and Coherence Domain Optical Methods in Biomedicine XVI, 82130O (7 February 2012); doi: 10.1117/12.908148

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 8213:
Optical Coherence Tomography and Coherence Domain Optical Methods in Biomedicine XVI
Joseph A. Izatt; James G. Fujimoto; Valery V. Tuchin, Editor(s)