Multibeam multifocal multiphoton photon counting imaging in scattering media

Abstract

Multiphoton microscopy is an invaluable technique for the neurological community, allowing for deep explorations within highly scattering tissues such as the brain. However, prior to this research multiphoton microscopy was limited in its ability to rapidly construct volumetric images deep within scattering specimens. This work establishes a technique that permits such exploration through the application of multiple beams separated in both space and time, where signal photons corresponding to those beams are demultiplexed through the use of a field programmable gate array. With this system a number of improvements are provided to research in scattering media, including the coveted ability to perform photon-counting imaging with multiple beams. The ability to perform these measurements with multiple beams permits unique quantitative measurements of fluorophores within living specimens, allowing new research into dynamic three-dimensional behavior occurring within the brain. Additionally, the ability to perform multimodal measurements without filtering allows for unique avenues of research where the harmonic generation is indistinguishable from the two-photon excited fluorescence. These improvements provide neuroscience researchers with a large assortment of technological tools that will permit them to perform numerous novel experiments within the brain and other highly-scattering specimens, which should one day lead to significant advances in our understanding of complex neuronal activity.