Polarization Differential Interference Contrast (PDIC) microscopy for quantitative phase and fluorescence imaging of mouse brain sections

Abstract

We present single-shot quantitative phase imaging with polarization differential interference contrast (PDIC) for a slightly modified differential interference contrast microscope which records the unfiltered Stokes vector of the differential interference pattern with a polarization camera. PDIC enables single-shot high spatial resolution phase imaging in realtime, applicable to either absorptive or transparent samples, and integrates simply with epifluorescence imaging. As one application to neuroscience, we then demonstrate quantitative phase imaging of a whole mouse brain section by PDIC microscope with coregistered epifluorescence measurement of labeled oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPC) and oligodendrocytes (OL) cells.