Compact fixed wavelength femtosecond oscillators as an add-on for tunable Ti:sapphire lasers extend the range of applications towards
multimodal imaging and optogenetics

T. Hakulinen; J. Klein

doi:10.1117/12.2212150

14 March 2016 Compact fixed wavelength femtosecond oscillators as an add-on for tunable Ti:sapphire lasers extend the range of applications towards multimodal imaging and optogenetics

T. Hakulinen, J. Klein

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 9712, Multiphoton Microscopy in the Biomedical Sciences XVI; 97121H (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2212150
Event: SPIE BiOS, 2016, San Francisco, California, United States

Abstract

Two-photon (2P) microscopy based on tunable Ti:sapphire lasers has become a widespread tool for 3D imaging with sub-cellular resolution in living tissues. In recent years multi-photon microscopy with simpler fixed-wavelength femtosecond oscillators using Yb-doped tungstenates as gain material has raised increasing interest in life-sciences, because these lasers offer one order of magnitude more average power than Ti:sapphire lasers in the wavelength range around 1040 nm: Two-photon (2P) excitation of mainly red or yellow fluorescent dyes and proteins (e.g. YFP, mFruit series) simultaneously has been proven with a single IR laser wavelength. A new approach is to extend the usability of existing tunable Titanium sapphire lasers by adding a fixed IR wavelength with an Yb femtosecond oscillator. By that means a multitude of applications for multimodal imaging and optogenetics can be supported. Furthermore fs Yb-lasers are available with a repetition rate of typically 10 MHz and an average power of typically 5 W resulting in pulse energy of typically 500 nJ, which is comparably high for fs-oscillators. This makes them an ideal tool for two-photon spinning disk laser scanning microscopy and holographic patterning for simultaneous photoactivation of large cell populations.

With this work we demonstrate that economical, small-footprint Yb fixed-wavelength lasers can present an interesting add-on to tunable lasers that are commonly used in multiphoton microscopy. The Yb fs-lasers hereby offer higher power for imaging of red fluorescent dyes and proteins, are ideally enhancing existing Ti:sapphire lasers with more power in the IR, and are supporting pulse energy and power hungry applications such as spinning disk microscopy and holographic patterning.

Conference Presentation

Citation Download Citation

T. Hakulinen and J. Klein "Compact fixed wavelength femtosecond oscillators as an add-on for tunable Ti:sapphire lasers extend the range of applications towards multimodal imaging and optogenetics", Proc. SPIE 9712, Multiphoton Microscopy in the Biomedical Sciences XVI, 97121H (14 March 2016); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2212150

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