Laser speckle contrast imaging: theoretical and practical limitations

David Briers; Donald D. Duncan; Evan R. Hirst; Sean J. Kirkpatrick; Marcus Larsson; Wiendelt Steenbergen; Tomas Stromberg; Oliver B. Thompson

doi:10.1117/1.JBO.18.6.066018

27 June 2013 Laser speckle contrast imaging: theoretical and practical limitations

David Briers, Donald D. Duncan, Evan R. Hirst, Sean J. Kirkpatrick, Marcus Larsson, Wiendelt Steenbergen, Tomas Stromberg, Oliver B. Thompson

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Journal of Biomedical Optics, Vol. 18, Issue 6, 066018 (June 2013). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.JBO.18.6.066018

Abstract

When laser light illuminates a diffuse object, it produces a random interference effect known as a speckle pattern. If there is movement in the object, the speckles fluctuate in intensity. These fluctuations can provide information about the movement. A simple way of accessing this information is to image the speckle pattern with an exposure time longer than the shortest speckle fluctuation time scale—the fluctuations cause a blurring of the speckle, leading to a reduction in the local speckle contrast. Thus, velocity distributions are coded as speckle contrast variations. The same information can be obtained by using the Doppler effect, but producing a two-dimensional Doppler map requires either scanning of the laser beam or imaging with a high-speed camera: laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI) avoids the need to scan and can be performed with a normal CCD- or CMOS-camera. LSCI is used primarily to map flow systems, especially blood flow. The development of LSCI is reviewed and its limitations and problems are investigated.

CC BY: © The Authors. Published by SPIE under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Unported License. Distribution or reproduction of this work in whole or in part requires full attribution of the original publication, including its DOI.

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David Briers, Donald D. Duncan, Evan R. Hirst, Sean J. Kirkpatrick, Marcus Larsson, Wiendelt Steenbergen, Tomas Stromberg, and Oliver B. Thompson "Laser speckle contrast imaging: theoretical and practical limitations," Journal of Biomedical Optics 18(6), 066018 (27 June 2013). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.JBO.18.6.066018

Published: 27 June 2013

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