| Class / Patent application number | Description | Number of patent applications / Date published |
|---|
| 359386000 | Using polarized light | 35 |
| 20090009859 | Circular Dichroism Fluorescent Microscope - According to a circular dichroism fluorescent microscope | 01-08-2009 |
| 20090040601 | POLARIZATION MICROSCOPE - It in an object to acquire a high-precision polarization image. Provided is a polarization microscope comprising an illumination optical system | 02-12-2009 |
| 20090040602 | Polarization Converter, Optical system, Method and Applications - A stress-induced polarization converter in the form of a zero power optical window or, alternatively, a single element, positive or negative power optical lens, that is subject to a controlled amount of symmetric, peripheral stress. The stress may be provided by appropriate mechanical, thermal, hydraulic, electromagnetic/piezo, annealing/molding, or other known techniques. The applied symmetric stress will advantageously be trigonal or four-fold, but is not so limited. Advantageously, the polarization converter will be exhibit greater than about one wave of retardation and, in a particular advantageous aspect, will exhibit at least two waves of phase retardation. The stressed lens or window will be characterized by a smoothly varying birefringence that, near center, will exhibit substantially circular contours of equal birefringence. When illuminated by circularly polarized light, the polarization converter will produce concentric rings of alternating right and left circular polarization. Embodiments of the invention further include various optical imaging and illumination systems. Non-limiting application embodiments include confocal microscopy and endoscopy systems, optical coherence tomography (OCT) systems, optical data storage systems, projection systems, camera systems exhibiting increased depth of field, semiconductor wafer inspection systems, and ophthalmic systems. | 02-12-2009 |
| 20090097110 | POLARIZED PHASE MICROSCOPY - A system and method of generating and acquiring phase contrast microscope images while minimizing interference with the intensity and optical quality of other microscopy modalities employing polarization and attenuation strategies for phase microscopy applications. A plane polarizing objective phase ring may be used in conjunction with a phase microscopy apparatus. Attenuated light may be controlled such that transparency may be selectively provided with respect to light in a predetermined plane. Illumination outside of the predetermined plane may be selected for phase microscopy applications. Accordingly, a polarizing objective phase ring effective for enabling polarized phase microscopy may reduce interfere with normal usage of the microscope for other applications such as, for example, fluorescence microscopy. | 04-16-2009 |
| 20090122397 | OPTICAL DEVICE AND LASER MICROSCOPE - The present invention is low cost, does not exert a negative influence on the surroundings, has a small group-velocity delay dispersion, efficiently blocks reflected return light such that the laser light does not return to the laser light source, and allows properly polarized laser light to enter a polarization-dependent element in a subsequent stage. An optical device is provided which includes a laser light source, an optical system that transmits laser light emitted from the laser light source, and a polarization-dependent element into which the laser light transmitted by the optical system enters. The characteristics of outgoing light are changed according to a polarization state of the incident light. The optical system includes a reflected-light generator that reflects a part of the transmitted laser light, and λ/4 wave plates are disposed such that the reflected-light generator is disposed therebetween. | 05-14-2009 |
| 20090195869 | Optical microscope system for detecting nanowires using polarizer and fast fourier transform - Provided is an optical microscope system for detecting nanowires that is designed with a rotational polarizer and Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) to allow for use of an existing optical microscope in fabricating an electronic device having the nanowires. The optical microscope system includes: a light source for emitting light to provide the light to a nanowire sample; a rotational polarizer provided on a path of the light emitted from the light source for polarizing the light; an optical microscope for detecting a nanowire image using light that is polarized by the rotational polarizer and incident on the nanowire sample; a CCD camera provided in a region of the optical microscope for photographing and storing the nanowire image detected by the optical microscope; and a data processor for performing Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) on the nanowire image stored in the CCD camera. Intensity of reflected light varies, due to optical anisotropy of the nanowires, along a polarizing orientation of light incident on the nanowires. It is possible to obtain a distinct image of the nanowires having a nanometer line width by performing FFT on each pixel of reflected light images obtained at predetermined time intervals after light passing through the polarizer rotating in a predetermined period is incident on the nanowires. | 08-06-2009 |
| 20090213456 | Illumination Module for Evanescent Illumination and Microscope - A microscope with a light source that produces an illumination light beam for evanescently illuminating a sample includes an adjustment mechanism with which the polarization of the illumination light beam may be changed. | 08-27-2009 |
| 20100060981 | Circular Dichroic Thermal Lens Microscope - An objective of the present invention is to provide a circular dichroism thermal lens microscope apparatus capable of identifying and quantifying optically active samples in ultra-trace amounts, and which has a higher sensitivity than conventional apparatuses. | 03-11-2010 |
| 20100085637 | DIFFERENTIAL INTERFERENCE CONTRAST MICROSCOPE - A differential interference contrast microscope (DIC microscope) suitable for inspecting a specimen inside a measurement area comprises a light source, a beam splitter, a first and second polarizer, a first and second DIC prism, a wave plate, and an image sensor, wherein the beam splitter reflects the beam generated from the light source to the measurement area, and the beam be reflected from the measurement area passes through the beam splitter to the image sensor. The first polarizer is located between the light source and the beam splitter, and the second polarizer is located between the beam splitter and the image sensor. The first DIC prism, the wave-plate and the second DIC prism are located between the beam splitter and the measurement area in order. The included angle between the principal axis of the first DIC prism and the principal axis of the second DIC prism is 90 degree. | 04-08-2010 |
| 20100142042 | MICROSCOPE AND MICROSCOPY METHOD FOR SPACE-RESOLVED MEASUREMENT OF A PREDETERMINED STRUCTURE, IN PARTICULAR A STRUCTURE OF A LITHOGRAPHIC MASK - A microscope is provided for space-resolved measurement of a predetermined structure ( | 06-10-2010 |
| 20100277794 | MICROSCOPE - A microscope includes a wire grid polarizing beam splitter that reflects a light emitted from a light source to a direction of an observation optical axis to cause the light to enter an objective lens, and transmits a reflected light from a specimen to cause the reflected light to enter an imaging lens; and a quarter wavelength plate that is placed between the objective lens and the specimen. | 11-04-2010 |
| 20100321773 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR THREE-DIMENSIONAL POLARIZATION-BASED CONFOCAL MICROSCOPY - A method and system for three-dimensional polarization-based confocal microscopy are provided in the present disclosure for analyzing the surface profile of an object. In the present disclosure, a linear-polarizing structured light formed by an optical grating is projected on the object underlying profile measurement. By means of a set of polarizers and steps of shifting the structured light, a series of images with respect to the different image-acquired location associated with the object are obtained using confocal principle. Following this, a plurality of focus indexes respectively corresponding to a plurality of inspected pixels of each image are obtained for forming a focus curve with respect to the measuring depth and obtaining a peak value associated with each depth response curve. Finally, a depth location with respect to the peak value for each depth response curve is obtained for reconstructing the surface profile of the object. | 12-23-2010 |
| 20110032608 | OPTICAL COMPONENT AND PHASE CONTRAST MICROSCOPE USING OPTICAL COMPONENT - In order to furnish an optical component and a phase contrast microscope which can indicate difference of phases of a specimen including information of frequency and color, at least two optical mediums are arranged side by side so that a constant difference of the phases is generated. | 02-10-2011 |
| 20110085236 | OPTICAL MICROSCOPE APPARATUS - An embodiment of the present invention provide for an optical microscope apparatus including a light source, a base unit, a rotary monochromatic dispersion unit, a condenser, a stage, an objective, a tubular assembly and an ocular assembly. In a preferred embodiment, light travels from the light source sequentially through each of these seven components, producing an image of the contents of a slide on the stage to a user looking through the ocular assembly. In the base unit, in place of a standard mirror which would direct the light vertically up into the scope along the z-axis, a right angle piece of single crystal Calcite, known as Iceland Spar is used, which has a birefringent affect upon the light as it passes up through the scope. | 04-14-2011 |
| 20110134520 | Optical isolation module and method for utilizing the same - According to one embodiment, an optical isolation module comprises first and second linear polarizers, a Faraday rotator situated between the first and second linear polarizers and a transmissive element including a half-wave plate also situated between the first and second linear polarizers. In one embodiment, a method for performing optical isolation comprises rotating an axis of polarization of a linearly polarized light beam by a first rotation in a first direction, and selectively rotating a portion of the linearly polarized light beam by a second rotation in the first direction to produce first and second linearly polarized light beam portions. As a result, the first linearly polarized light beam portion undergoes the first rotation, and the second linearly polarized light beam portion undergoes the first and second rotations. The method further comprises filtering one of the first and second linearly polarized light beam portions to produce a light annulus. | 06-09-2011 |
| 20110164313 | MICROSCOPE FOR RETICLE INSPECTION WITH VARIABLE ILLUMINATION SETTINGS - During mask inspection predominantly defects of interest which also occur during wafer exposure. Therefore, the aerial images generated in the resist and on the detector have to be as far as possible identical. In order to achieve an equivalent image generation, during mask inspection the illumination and, on the object side, the numerical aperture are adapted to the scanner used. A further form of mask inspection microscopes serves for measuring the reticles and is also referred to as a registration tool. The illumination is used by the stated conventional and abaxial illumination settings for optimizing the contrast. The accuracy of the registration measurement is thus increased. The invention relates to a mask inspection microscope for variably setting the illumination. It serves for generating an image of the structure ( | 07-07-2011 |
| 20110194175 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR FAST THREE-DIMENSIONAL STRUCTURED-ILLUMINATION-MICROSCOPY IMAGING - Embodiments of the present invention are directed to providing and controlling illumination for three-dimensional structured illumination microscopy. Three phase-coherent beams, referred to as a “beam triplet,” are produced with planar beamsplitters. The relative phases of the beams are controlled by piezo-coupled mirrors or other means. The beams pass through the microscope objective and interfere to produce the 3D structured illumination pattern. The spatial orientation and location of the pattern is manipulated by adjusting the relative phases of the beams. | 08-11-2011 |
| 20110222147 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR SIMULTANEOUS FLUORESCENCE EXCITATION (2-WAVELENGTHS-IR) - An apparatus in a simultaneous fluorescence excitation microscope is described, allowing simultaneous fluorescence excitation by light of at least two different wavelengths. The apparatus has a laser light source generating a light beam. A first beam splitter splits the light beam into a first partial light beam and a second partial light beam. A wavelength converter converts the wavelength of the first partial light beam. A microscope optical system into which the first partial light beam and the second partial light beam are coupled directs the two partial light beams onto an object to be examined. | 09-15-2011 |
| 20120008197 | MICROSCOPE, MORE PARTICULARLY FLUORESCENCE MICROSCOPE, DICHROIC BEAM SPLITTER AND USE THEREOF - The invention relates to a microscope, more particularly to a fluorescence microscope, for the structured illumination microscopy, comprising a microscope light path having an optical axis, including a beam splitter for coupling illumination light into the microscope light path, including an illumination pattern unit disposed, in particular, in the microscope light path for the purpose of generating an illuminated pattern on, or in, a sample to be examined, comprising a rotary device for the purpose of effecting relative rotation about the optical axis between the illumination pattern and the sample to be examined. The microscope is characterized in that a rotary polarizing device is provided for the purpose of rotating a polarization of the illumination light, that the angular positions of the rotary device and of the rotary polarizing device are inflexibly coupled to each other, that in order to reduce polarization effects during relative rotation between the illumination pattern and the beam splitter, a beam splitter is used which reflects and/or transmits the incident illumination light while substantially maintaining the polarization state, and/or that in order to reduce polarization effects while effecting relative rotation between the illumination pattern and the beam splitter, a beam splitter is positioned in the optical path such that the angle of incidence of the illumination light relative to a surface normal vector of the beam splitter is less than 45 degrees. The invention also relates to a dichroic beam splitter and to the use thereof in a fluorescence microscope. | 01-12-2012 |
| 20120120487 | ENDOSCOPE AND ENDOSCOPE APPARATUS - An endoscope includes: a first illumination optical system which emits illuminating light in a first linear polarization direction to an object from a distal end face of an insertion portion; and a first objective optical system which allows return light from the object to enter through an objective window provided in the distal end face; wherein the first illumination optical system and the first objective optical system are placed in a positional relationship such that on the distal end face, a line segment connecting an optical axis of the first illumination optical system and an optical axis of the first objective optical system is parallel or perpendicular to a polarization direction which results when the illuminating light emitted from the first illumination optical system is projected to the distal end face, and no polarizing element is provided between the object and the objective window. | 05-17-2012 |
| 20120162755 | MASK INSPECTION MICROSCOPE WITH VARIABLE ILLUMINATION SETTING - During mask inspection it is necessary to identify defects which also occur during wafer exposure. Therefore, the aerial images generated in the resist and on the detector have to be as far as possible identical. In order to achieve an equivalent image generation, during mask inspection the illumination and, on the object side, the numerical aperture are adapted to the scanner used. The invention relates to a mask inspection microscope for variably setting the illumination. It serves for generating an image of the structure ( | 06-28-2012 |
| 20120176673 | SYSTEMS FOR FLUORESCENCE ILLUMINATION USING SUPERIMPOSED POLARIZATION STATES - Various superimposing beam controls that can superimpose beams of light with different optical properties are described. In one aspect, a beam control receives a beam of light and outputs one or more beams. Each beam is output in a different polarization state and with different optical properties. Superimposing beam controls can be incorporated in fluorescence microscopy instruments to split a beam of excitation light into one or more beams of excitation light. Each beam of excitation light has a different polarization and is output with different optical properties so that each excitation beam can be used to execute a different microscopy technique. | 07-12-2012 |
| 20120268812 | MICROSCOPE AND MICROSCOPY TECHNIQUES - A microscope with at least one illumination beam that is phase modulated in a section along its cross-section with a modulation frequency and a microscope lens for focusing the illumination beam into a test as well as a detection beam path and at least one means of demodulation, wherein at least one polarization altering item is scheduled in the illuminating beam path, for which a phase plate is subordinated that exhibits at least two areas with different phase influence. | 10-25-2012 |
| 20120320455 | Laser Scanning Module Including an Optical Isolator - The present application discloses various implementations of a laser scanning module. In one implementation, such a laser scanning module comprising an optical isolator including first and second linear polarizers, a collimating optics configured to receive light produced by a laser light source and to pass a substantially collimated light beam to the first linear polarizer, and a scanning unit situated to receive light passed by the second linear polarizer. The first linear polarizer is separated from the collimating optics by a first distance less than a second distance separating the second linear polarizer from the scanning unit. | 12-20-2012 |
| 20130188251 | MICROSCOPE AND INSPECTION APPARATUS - A system including a microscope and an inspection apparatus in which an objective lens having a large numerical aperture is used for detecting a defect existing inside a sample. A light source apparatus produces linearly polarized light. The polarization maintaining fibers optically coupled to the light source apparatus project the linearly polarized light onto the sample surface as an illumination beam of P-polarized light at an incidence angle substantially equal to the Brewster's angle of the sample. The scattered light generated by the defect existing in the sample is emitted from the sample and is collected by the objective lens whose optical axis is perpendicular to the sample surface. Since the illumination beam of P-polarized light is projected at the incidence angle equal to the Brewster's angle of the sample, no surface reflection occurs and it is possible to use the objective lens having a large numerical aperture. | 07-25-2013 |
| 20130329285 | OPTICAL MICROSCOPE APPARATUS - An embodiment of the present invention provide for an optical microscope apparatus including a light source, a base unit, a rotary monochromatic dispersion unit, a condenser, a stage, an objective, a tubular assembly and an ocular assembly. In a preferred embodiment, light travels from the light source sequentially through each of these seven components, producing an image of the contents of a slide on the stage to a user looking through the ocular assembly. In the base unit, in place of a standard mirror which would direct the light vertically up into the scope along the z-axis, a right angle piece of single crystal Calcite, known as Iceland Spar is used, which has a birefringent affect upon the light as it passes up through the scope. | 12-12-2013 |
| 20140118820 | MICROSCOPE AND CONTROLLING METHOD - A microscope includes a light source, a condenser lens, an objective lens, a polarizer, a compensator which is disposed on an optical path XA of the light source between the condenser lens and the polarizer and is rotatable about the optical path XA and is configured to adjust variation of retardation with respect to a specimen S by transmitting only a component of light in a specified vibration direction transmitted through the polarizer depending on an angle of rotation from a reference position, a driving unit configured to rotate the compensator, and a control unit configured to cause the compensator to increase or decrease the retardation within a range including a position where the retardation is zero as a reference. | 05-01-2014 |
| 20140126048 | ILLUMINATION APPARATUS FOR MICROSCOPE AND MICROSCOPE USING THE SAME - A illumination apparatus for microscope comprises a light source, a spatial modulation section, a first illumination optical system, a second illumination optical system, and the spatial modulation section includes a spatial modulation element which is of reflecting type, and a polarizing element, and the first illumination optical system is disposed in an optical path from the light source up to the spatial modulation element, and the second illumination optical system is disposed in an optical path from the spatial modulation element up to a specimen position, and a position of the spatial modulation element is conjugate with the specimen position. Moreover, a microscope comprises a illumination apparatus, a main-body section, an observation unit, and a control unit, and the illumination apparatus for microscope is to be used as the illumination apparatus. | 05-08-2014 |
| 20140185137 | Optical Microscope Apparatus - An optical microscope system and method having a birefringent material for decomposing light from a light source into ordinary and extraordinary waves, a first prism for directing the decomposed light sequentially through a specimen and an objective along a light path and a second prism positioned in the light path of the decomposed light, said second prism positioned subsequent the objective and prior to an ocular assembly. | 07-03-2014 |
| 20140285881 | SUPER-RESOLUTION MICROSCOPE - A super-resolution microscope comprises: an illumination optical system that condenses a first illumination light beam for exciting the molecule from a stable state to a first quantum state and a second illumination light beam for further transitioning the molecule onto a sample in a manner that the first and the second illumination light beams are partially overlapped; a scanning section that scans the sample by relatively displacing the first and the second illumination light beams and the sample; a detection section that detects an optical response signal emitted from the sample; and a phase plate that is arranged in the illumination optical system and has M surface areas for modulating the phase of the second illumination light beam, wherein the phase plate comprises a monolayer optical thin film with M surface areas formed on an optical substrate with a thickness that satisfies the predetermined conditional expression. | 09-25-2014 |
| 20140307311 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR ANNULAR OPTICAL POWER MANAGEMENT - A system and method for obtaining super-resolution image of an object. An illumination beam is directed through an optical axis onto the object to be imaged. Paraxial rays of the illumination beam are deflected away from the optical axis and into a beam dump. The non-paraxial rays are collected after being reflected by the object so as to generate an image only from the non-paraxial rays. | 10-16-2014 |
| 20150055215 | DIFFERENTIAL FILTERING CHROMATIC CONFOCAL MICROSCOPIC SYSTEM - A differential filtering chromatic confocal microscopic system comprises a chromatic dispersion objective for receiving and axially dispersing a broadband light from a light source and projecting dispersed lights onto an object thereby forming an object light reflected therefrom; an optical modulation module for dividing the object light into a first and a second object lights; a pair of optical intensity sensing module, respectively having a spatial filter with a different pinhole diameter or a slit width from each other, for detecting the first and second object lights, thereby obtaining a plurality of first and second optical intensity signals; and a signal processor for respectively processing the plurality of first and second optical intensity signals thereby obtaining a plurality of differential rational values of optical intensity and determining a corresponding object depth associated with each differential rational value according to a relation between signal intensity ratio and object surface depth. | 02-26-2015 |
| 20150077845 | Device and method for microscopy - The invention relates to a device for microscopy, with at least one light source for providing illumination light, with a detection unit for detecting light radiated back from a sample, with a microscopy optical unit for guiding illumination light onto the sample and for guiding light radiated back from the sample in the direction of the detection unit and with, arranged in an illumination beam path, an excitation mask ( | 03-19-2015 |
| 20150301325 | OPTICAL ARRANGEMENT AND LIGHT MICROSCOPE - An optical arrangement for positioning in a beam path of a light microscope, has an optical carrier, on which a first set of optical assemblies for generating structured illumination light of different orientations is arranged. The optical arrangement includes an adjustable deflection device provided for selectably deflecting a light beam to one of the optical assemblies and for deflecting one light beam coming from said optical assembly into the direction of a sample that is to be examined. The invention further relates to a light microscope having an optical arrangement according to the invention. | 10-22-2015 |
| 20180024063 | METHOD AND SCANNING FLUORESCENCE MICROSCOPE FOR MULTI-DIMENSIONAL HIGH-RESOLUTION IMAGING A STRUCTURE OR A PATH OF A PARTICLE IN A SAMPLE | 01-25-2018 |
