We propose a low-coherence spectral-domain phase microscopy (SDPM) system for accurate quantitative phase measurements in red blood cells (RBCs) for the prognosis and monitoring of disease conditions that affect the visco-elastic properties of RBCs. Using the system, we performed time-recordings of cell membrane fluctuations, and compared the nano-scale fluctuation dynamics of healthy and glutaraldehyde-treated RBCs. Glutaraldehyde-treated RBCs possess lower amplitudes of fluctuations, reflecting an increased membrane stiffness. To demonstrate the ability of our system to measure fluctuations of lower amplitudes than those measured by the commonly used holographic phase microscopy techniques, we also constructed wide-field digital interferometry (WFDI) system and compared the performances of both systems. Due to its common-path geometry, the optical-path-delay stability of SDPM was found to be less than 0.3 nm in liquid environment, at least three times better than WFDI under the same conditions. In addition, due to the compactness of SDPM and its inexpensive and robust design, the system possesses a high potential for clinical applications.
We demonstrate the use of a low-coherence spectral-domain phase microscopy (SDPM) system for accurate quantitative
phase measurements in red blood cells (RBCs) for the prognosis and monitoring of disease conditions that affect the
visco-elastic properties of RBCs. Using the system, we performed time-recordings of cell membrane fluctuations, and
compared the nano-scale fluctuation dynamics of healthy and glutaraldehyde-treated RBCs. Glutaraldehyde-treated
RBCs possess a lower amplitude of fluctuations reflecting an increased membrane stiffness. To demonstrate the ability
of our system to measure fluctuations of lower amplitudes than those measured by the commonly used holographic phase
microscopy techniques, we also constructed a wide-field digital interferometric microscope and compared the
performances of the two systems. Due to its common-path geometry, the optical-path-delay stability of SDPM was found
to be less than 0.3nm in liquid environment, at least three times better than in holographic phase microscopy under the
same conditions. In addition, due to the compactness of SDPM and its inexpensive and robust design, the system
possesses a high potential for clinical applications.
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