AUTOFOCUS SYSTEM

摘要

An autofocus apparatus is capable of detecting the position of a sample on a microscope. The sample may consist of a specimen mounted between a microscope slide and coverslip or specimens within a well plate. The device tracks the position of a sample by identifying refractive index boundaries through Fresnel reflections. A change in refractive index can correspond to the top and bottom of a coverslip, the top of a slide, the bottom of a well plate or the bottom of a well within a well plate. Using optical coherence tomography (OCT) these reflections are used to form a depth scan of the sample which gives the positions of these surfaces relative to the objective. The device functions as an autofocus system by compensating for any variation of the position of the sample from the focal plane of the objective.

主权项

1. An autofocus apparatus, comprising:
a light source; an optical coupler having a first port, second port, a third port and a fourth port; wherein light output from the light source is coupled to the first port and splits into a first light beam and a second light beam, the first light beam being output to the second port and the second light beam being output to the third port, and wherein the forth port is coupled to an input of a spectrometer; a first optical collimator for directing the first light beam from the second port of the optical coupler onto a sample through a Dichroic mirror and a microscope objective, wherein the sample is placed on a substrate supported by an adjustable microscopy stage; a second optical collimator for directing the second light beam from the third port of the optical coupler onto a retroreflector; wherein the first light beam reflected from the sample is directed back into the second port and out of the fourth port, and second light beam reflected from the retroreflector is directed back into the third port and out of the fourth port; wherein the spectrometer output control signals to control the adjustable microscopy stage based on an interference signal from the reflected first and second light beams.