Pseudo-random single photon counting: a high-speed implementation

Abstract

Pseudo-random single photon counting (PRSPC) is a new time-resolved optical measurement method which combines the spread spectrum time-resolved method with single photon counting. A pseudo-random bit sequence is used to modulate a continuous wave laser diode, while single photon counting is used to build up the optical signal in response to the modulated excitation. Periodic cross-correlation is performed to obtain the temporal profile of the subject of interest. Compared with conventional time-correlated single photon counting (TCSPC), PRSPC enjoys many advantages such as low cost and high count rate without compromising the sensitivity and time-resolution. In this paper, we report a PRSPC system that can be used for high-speed acquisition of the temporal point spread function of diffuse photons. It can reach a photon count rate as high as 3 Mcps (counts per second). Phantom experiments have been conducted to demonstrate the system performance.