System and method for optical coherence tomography with spectrally modulated light injected into optical fibre

US8339610B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• AGFA HEALTHCARE NV · BE

Inventors

• Rainer Nebosis · Munich, DE
• Rainer Scheunemann · Munich, DE
• Edgar-Gerald Kopp · Merching, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Feb 20, 2008
• Grant date: Dec 25, 2012
• Expiry date: Apr 20, 2029

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G01B9/02091
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

The invention relates to a system and to a corresponding method for optical coherence tomography having a light source (15) for producing light (14), a first interferometer (10), a second interferometer (20) and an optical fiber (17) by means of which light emitted by the first interferometer (10) is conveyed to the second interferometer (20).For simpler and more efficient injection of the light emitted by the first interferometer (10) into the optical fiber (17) provision is made such that light is injected into the first interferometer (10) which has a first number of transversal modes, and the optical fiber (17) has at least one multi-mode fiber into which the light passing out of the first interferometer (10) is injected such that in the optical fiber (17) a second number of transversal modes is stimulated which is conveyed to the second interferometer (20), the second number of transversal modes being substantially greater than the first number of transversal modes.