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Optoacoustic microscopy (OAM) is an emerging technology combining the beneficial features of optical contrast and ultrasound resolution, to form a hybrid imaging technique capable of multi-scale, high-contrast and high-resolution imaging through optically scattering biological tissues. In the past 15 years, two system modifications have been developed for optoacoustic / photoacoustic microscopy: acoustic-resolution AR-OAM and optical-resolution OR-OAM. Typically, acoustic resolution systems can image deeper tissues structures, however, with resolution at least an order of magnitude worse than the systems of optical-resolution. It would be attractive for variety of biomedical applications to attain high (submicron) resolution at a depth exceeding the present limit of the optical resolution optoacoustic microscopy. Here we introduce a novel, all-optical method for OAM, in which not only thermal energy deposition, but also optoacoustic signal detection is achieved optically. In our design the probe laser beam was used as an ultrawide-band ultrasonic transducer. In this method the acoustic pressure wave amplitude is proportional to the angle of deflection of the probing CW laser beam incident on a balanced dual photodiode. Such laser beam deflection (LBD) method overcomes the limitations of conventional piezoelectric ultrasound transducers and optical interferometers. LBD method allows one to use high numerical aperture objectives for better focusing, avoid distortions associated with the system elements that separate optical and acoustic paths, and provides better sensitivity than any optical interferometer. It also provides a non-contact method that is insensitive to optical and acoustic artifacts typical of backward mode of optoacoustic imaging. The LBD sensitivity depends on a large number of system parameters such as probe beam power, spot size, interaction length, optical refraction index of the coupling medium, laser wavelength, photodiode sensitivity, proximity to the optoacoustic source, and thus, can be optimized. The basic setup of OR-LBD-OAM shows high sensitivity competitive with commercial ultrasonic transducers. We report first images of biological cells and tissues obtained using this technique.
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