Ultrahigh-Speed Spectral-Domain Optical Coherence Tomography up to 1-MHz A-Scan Rate Using Space-Time-Division Multiplexing

Abstract

The primary optimization of the imaging speed of optical coherence tomography (OCT) has been keenly studied. In order to overcome the major speed limitation of spectral-domain OCT (SD-OCT), we developed an ultrahigh-speed SD-OCT system, with an A-scan rate of up to 1 MHz, using the method of space-time-division multiplexing (STDM). Multicameras comprising a single spectrometer were implemented in the developed ultrahigh-speed STDM method to eliminate the dead time of operation, whereas STDM was simultaneously employed to enable wide-range scanning measurements at a high speed. By successfully integrating the developed STDM method with GPU parallel processing, 8 vol/s for an image range of 250 x 250 x 2048 pixels (9 x 4.5 x 5 mm) was achieved, with an adjustable volume rate according to the required scanning speed and range. The examined STDM-OCT results of the customized optical thin film confirmed its feasibility for various fields that require rapid and wide-field scanning.