Top-hat Excitation Research Articles

Intelligent adaptable excitation field for uniform dye photoswitching in SMLM.

In Single Molecule Localization Microscopy (SMLM), the quality of the super-resolved image highly depends on the capacity to generate single molecule imaging conditions. dSTORM in particular strongly relies on the control of the fluorescent dye photophysics. A method, called ASTER (Adaptable Scanning for Tunable Emission Regions) has been recently proposed to generate an effective uniform excitation by introducing a fast scanning (kHz) of the gaussian LASER beam which creates dynamically a top hat excitation. We will see how this technology can be used to understand and quantify the photoswitching rates for several fluorescent dyes.

An analytical model for top-hat long transient mode-mismatched thermal lens spectroscopy

It has been shown that a top-hat excitation beam gives rise to a more sensitive signal for the thermal lens spectroscopy (TLS). Recently, a numerical model has been presented for a top- hat excitation beam in a dual-beam mod-mismatched TLS [Opt. Lett. 33(13), 1464-1466 (2008)]. In this work, we present a full analytical version of this model. Our model was based on a new solution of time-dependent heat equation for a finite radius cylindrical sample exposed to a top-hat excitation laser beam. The Fresnel diffraction integration method was then used to calculate on-axis probe-beam intensity variations due to thermal lensing by taking the aberrant nature of the thermal lens into account. The model was confirmed with experimental data of LSCAS-2 with an excellent agreement.

Material characterization with top-hat cw laser induced photothermal techniques: A short review

In this work, we present a short review of the recent development of the theoretical models for top-hat cw laser induced spectroscopies of thermal lens and thermal mirror. With the same probe and top-hat excitation lasers, an apparatus is set up to concurrently measure both thermal lens and thermal mirror effects of transparent samples. With the theoretical models and the experimental apparatus, not only optical and thermal properties are measured, but also the fluorescence quantum coefficient and the temperature coefficient of the optical path length of a fluorescent sample are simultaneously determined with no need of any reference sample. Mechanical properties also could be measured. Opaque samples are also studied using top-hat cw laser thermal mirror and top-hat photothermal deflection techniques to determine thermal properties (e.g., thermal conductivity and unit volume specific heat). This work shows that the combined top-hat cw laser photothermal techniques are useful for nondestructive evaluation of both transparent and opaque samples with a less expensive non-TEM00 Gaussian laser.

Top-hat cw laser induced thermal mirror: a complete model for material characterization

A complete theoretical model is presented for the thermal mirror technique under top-hat laser excitation. Considering the attenuation of the top-hat excitation laser intensity along the thickness of a sample due to its optical absorption coefficient, we calculate the laser-induced temperature and surface deformation profiles. A simplified theoretical model for a high absorption sample is also developed. The center intensity of a probe beam reflected from the thermal mirror at a detector plane is derived. Numerical simulation shows that the thermal mirror under the top-hat laser excitation is as sensitive as that under Gaussian laser excitation. With top-hat laser excitation, the experimental results of thermo-physical properties of opaque samples are found to be well consistent with literature values, validating the theory.

Time-resolved thermal mirror technique with top-hat cw laser excitation

A theoretical model was developed for time-resolved thermal mirror spectroscopy under top-hat cw laser excitation that induced a nanoscale surface displacement of a low absorption sample. An additional phase shift to the electrical field of a TEM(00) probe beam reflected from the surface displacement was derived, and Fresnel diffraction theory was used to calculate the propagation of the probe beam. With the theory, optical and thermal properties of three glasses were measured, and found to be consistent with literature values. With a top-hat excitation, an experimental apparatus was developed for either a single thermal mirror or a single thermal lens measurement. Furthermore, the apparatus was used for concurrent measurements of thermal mirror and thermal lens. More physical properties could be measured using the concurrent measurements.