Label-free multimodal microscopy using a single light source and detector for biological imaging

Multimodal nonlinear microscopy has been widely applied in biology and medicine due to its relatively deep penetration into tissue and its label-free manner. However, current multimodal systems require the use of multiple sources and detectors, leading to bulky, complex, and expensive systems. In this Letter, we present a novel method of using a single light source and detector for nonlinear multimodal imaging of biological samples. Using a photonic crystal fiber, a pulse picker, and multimode fibers, our developed system successfully acquired multimodal images of swine coronary arteries, including two-photon excitation fluorescence, second-harmonic generation, coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering, and backreflection. The developed system could be a valuable tool for various biomedical applications. (C) 2021 Optical Society of America