View and Scanning-Depth Expansion Photographic Microscope Using Ultrafast Switching Mirrors

This article presents a novel view and scanning-depth expansion photographic microscope using ultrafast switching mirrors and high-speed vision that can simultaneously extend both the field of view (FOV) and the scanning-depth range of a typical optical microscope in real-time. Two ultrafast switching mirrors that can switch at several hundred hertz are used for micro-gaze control via synchronization through a high-speed vision system. The FOV can be changed while maintaining a constant length of the optical path by adjusting the angles of the two mirrors, which ensures that the extended FOV is within the focal range. We evaluated and designed mirror angle combinations for view expansion at multiple depths, making it possible to extend view and depth in real-time without considering the complex design and computing required by computational imaging micro view expansion approaches. The effectiveness of our system was demonstrated by several experiments, including micro view expansion at a single depth and multiple depths in real-time. In addition, by evaluating the image quality of the view expansion image, our proposed system can automatically output always-focused view expansion images in real-time even when samples move at different depths.