High-throughput, multiplexed pushbroom hyperspectral microscopy

We describe a high-throughput hyperspectral microscope. The system replaces the slit of conventional pushbroom spectral imagers with a static coded aperture mask. We present the theoretical underpinnings of the aperture coded spectral engine and describe two proof-of-concept experimental implementations. Compared to a conventional pushbroom system, the aperture coded systems have 32 times greater throughput. Both systems have about a 1 nm spectral resolution over the spectral range of 550-665 nm. For the first design, the spatial resolution for the system is 5.4 mu m, while the spatial resolution for the second system ranges from 7.7 mu m to 1.54 mu m. We describe experimental results from proof-of-concept applications of the imager to hyperspectral microscopy. (C) 2008 Optical Society of America.