Extending the Depth of Focus of an Infrared Microscope Using a Binary Axicon Fabricated on Barium Fluoride
Molong Han,
Daniel Smith,
Tauno Kahro,
Dominyka Stonytė,
Aarne Kasikov,
Darius Gailevičius,
Vipin Tiwari,
Agnes Pristy Ignatius Xavier,
Shivasubramanian Gopinath,
Soon Hock Ng,
Aravind Simon John Francis Rajeswary,
Aile Tamm,
Kaupo Kukli,
Keith Bambery,
Jitraporn Vongsvivut,
Saulius Juodkazis,
Vijayakumar Anand
Affiliations
Molong Han
Optical Sciences Centre and ARC Training Centre in Surface Engineering for Advanced Materials (SEAM), School of Science, Computing and Engineering Technologies, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC 3122, Australia
Daniel Smith
Optical Sciences Centre and ARC Training Centre in Surface Engineering for Advanced Materials (SEAM), School of Science, Computing and Engineering Technologies, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC 3122, Australia
Tauno Kahro
Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, 50411 Tartu, Estonia
Dominyka Stonytė
Laser Research Center, Physics Faculty, Vilnius University, Sauletekio Ave. 10, 10223 Vilnius, Lithuania
Aarne Kasikov
Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, 50411 Tartu, Estonia
Darius Gailevičius
Laser Research Center, Physics Faculty, Vilnius University, Sauletekio Ave. 10, 10223 Vilnius, Lithuania
Vipin Tiwari
Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, 50411 Tartu, Estonia
Agnes Pristy Ignatius Xavier
Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, 50411 Tartu, Estonia
Shivasubramanian Gopinath
Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, 50411 Tartu, Estonia
Soon Hock Ng
Optical Sciences Centre and ARC Training Centre in Surface Engineering for Advanced Materials (SEAM), School of Science, Computing and Engineering Technologies, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC 3122, Australia
Aravind Simon John Francis Rajeswary
Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, 50411 Tartu, Estonia
Aile Tamm
Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, 50411 Tartu, Estonia
Kaupo Kukli
Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, 50411 Tartu, Estonia
Keith Bambery
Infrared Microspectroscopy (IRM) Beamline, ANSTO—Australian Synchrotron, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
Jitraporn Vongsvivut
Infrared Microspectroscopy (IRM) Beamline, ANSTO—Australian Synchrotron, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
Saulius Juodkazis
Optical Sciences Centre and ARC Training Centre in Surface Engineering for Advanced Materials (SEAM), School of Science, Computing and Engineering Technologies, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC 3122, Australia
Vijayakumar Anand
Optical Sciences Centre and ARC Training Centre in Surface Engineering for Advanced Materials (SEAM), School of Science, Computing and Engineering Technologies, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC 3122, Australia
Axial resolution is one of the most important characteristics of a microscope. In all microscopes, a high axial resolution is desired in order to discriminate information efficiently along the longitudinal direction. However, when studying thick samples that do not contain laterally overlapping information, a low axial resolution is desirable, as information from multiple planes can be recorded simultaneously from a single camera shot instead of plane-by-plane mechanical refocusing. In this study, we increased the focal depth of an infrared microscope non-invasively by introducing a binary axicon fabricated on a barium fluoride substrate close to the sample. Preliminary results of imaging the thick and sparse silk fibers showed an improved focal depth with a slight decrease in lateral resolution and an increase in background noise.
