Alex Dorn, Hans Zappe and Çağlar Ataman at IMTEK, University of Freiburg have published a conjugate adaptive optics extension for commercial microscopes in Advanced Photonics Nexus. Ataman invented the Deformable Phase Plate and is Phaseform’s Lead Scientific Advisor; Zappe advises the company on micro-optics. The work addresses a key limitation of traditional AO systems: the restricted field of view due to the isoplanatic patch size.
In standard AO systems, the isoplanatic patch—a region where aberration correction is effective—is typically small, limiting AO’s ability to handle larger, diverse imaging areas. This is especially challenging in fields like biological imaging, where samples are extensive and varied.
This work presents a conjugate AO system that can be retrofitted onto commercial microscopes, marking a shift from research-specific AO systems to more accessible, plug-and-play solutions. This extension leverages a Deformable Phase Plate (DPP), the refractive wavefront modulator from Phaseform, to correct complex, field-dependent aberrations over large areas, even with substantial sample-induced distortions. A unique feature is its in-line design, allowing precise axial adjustments of the DPP, thereby optimizing image correction across diverse imaging depths. This system also enables sensorless aberration correction using indirect wavefront sensing, eliminating the need for complex folding optics traditionally required for AO, thus reducing system bulk and making it applicable to a range of biological and biomedical applications.
This paper presents the first conjugate AO extension compatible with commercial microscopes, which can be retrofitted between the camera port and image sensor. This setup introduces a deformable phase plate (DPP) as the corrective element, allowing for in-line architecture without complex additional optics. Unlike traditional systems that rely on deformable mirrors positioned at the pupil plane, this setup optimizes AO for complex, field-dependent aberrations across a larger field of view. The DPP’s position can be adjusted axially, allowing the system to optimize the corrective plane.
This extension’s design offers a plug-and-play solution that simplifies integrating AO into existing microscopes, thus broadening accessibility for various biomedical imaging applications.
The study demonstrates that this system significantly extends the correctable field of view beyond what is achievable with conventional pupil-plane AO systems. By optimizing the conjugate plane position, the extension achieves nearly full-field correction, enhancing imaging quality and detail across larger sample areas, even in the presence of strong aberrations.
A complementary approach from the same group—a modular plug-and-play AO attachment that segments the field into isoplanatic patches—is described in Plug-and-play adaptive optics with full-field correction.
Original publication: Alex Dorn, Hans Zappe, and Çağlar Ataman, “Conjugate adaptive optics extension for commercial microscopes”, Advanced Photonics Nexus, Vol. 3, Issue 5, 056018 (2024). DOI: 10.1117/1.APN.3.5.056018
