Speaker
Description
For hundreds of years we have known that visible light can pass through human tissues, while for about fifty years we have also known that this offers incredible diagnostic and treatment opportunities. Among several applications, here we focus in particular on those requiring innovative photon detectors to push the actual barriers of laser based diagnostic tools, and in particular on time domain diffuse optics (TDDO), which is a non-ionizing, label-free, and non-invasive technique capable of probing highly scattering media like biological tissues using just visible and/or near-infrared sub-nanosecond light pulses. From the analysis of the tissue absorption and scattering spectra and of the speckle intensity fluctuations of coherent light, the technique allows one to derive information about tissue composition, microstructure, and microvascular blood flow. TDDO has already opened, but it is still stimulating, new perspectives in several medical fields spanning from oncology to neurology, as well as in various non-medical fields like the optical characterization of food or wood. From the photon detection point of view, in particular, TDDO is experiencing fascinating technology advancements, fostered by the unceasing evolution of single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs), silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs), and superconductive nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPDs), mostly in the framework of a running (fastMOT -G.A. 101099291-) and of some recently concluded EU H2020 projects. In this work, we will review the performances of nowadays cutting-edge photon detectors in this field, their inherent advantages that have enabled the evolution of diffuse optical imaging systems from table-top instruments to wearable systems, also enabling an unprecedented penetration depth inside human tissues (up to about 4 cm), as well as their remaining limitations in order to stimulate the research towards a perfect photon detector for time domain diffuse optics.
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