Photoacoustic topography through an ergodic relay (PATER)

With wearable devices in mind, we have introduced the concept of ergodicity into photoacoustic imaging and realized snapshot widefield high-throughput imaging. This technique captures wide-field images with single laser shots by encoding spatial information with randomized temporal signatures through an ergodic relay. It provides a kilohertz frame rate without any mechanical scanning with a single-element ultrasonic transducer, significantly reducing the complexity and cost of the photoacoustic imaging system while maintaining its performance. It holds great promise for wearable and portable medical devices. The research results have been published in Nature Photonics (14, 164–170, 2020) and Nature Protocols (16, 2381–2394, 2021). One US patent has been applied based on this innovation.

Snapshot photoacoustic topography through an ergodic relay of optical absorption in vivo, Nature Protocols (2021) 16, 2381–2394

Snapshot photoacoustic topography through an ergodic relay for high-throughput imaging of optical absorption, Nature Photonics (2020) 14, 164–170