Microscale photoacoustic spectroscopy, imaging, and microscopy
US11378552B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 5, 2020 |
| Grant date | Jul 5, 2022 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 13, 2040 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01N2201/06113
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A microscale photoacoustic sensor uses the detection of ultrasound waves generated by a sample in response to incident light absorption to perform photoacoustic spectroscopy, imaging, and microscopy. The microscale photoacoustic sensor, including components to excite a sample and detect ultrasound waves, may be integrated onto a single chip. The microscale photoacoustic sensor may excite a sample using a metasurface collimator. The metasurface collimator includes an array of diffraction grooves to collimate an excitation beam uniformly out of the plane of the sensor to create a wide and homogeneous beam spot. The microscale photoacoustic sensor may detect ultrasound waves using an optical photoacoustic transducer. The optical photoacoustic transducer includes a resonator on a mechanical membrane to detect ultrasound waves with high sensitivity. The microscale photoacoustic sensor may be used in applications such as deep-tissue neural imaging or microfluidic biological screening.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.