Patents Represented by Attorney, Agent or Law Firm Pilsbury Winthrop LLP
  • Patent number: 6564089
    Abstract: An Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) device irradiates a biological tissue with low coherence light, obtains a high resolution tomogram of the inside of the tissue by low-coherent interference with scattered light from the tissue, and is provided with an optical probe which includes an optical fiber having a flexible and thin insertion part for introducing the low coherent light. When the optical probe is inserted into a blood vessel or a patient's body cavity, the OCT enables the doctor to observe a high resolution tomogram. In a optical probe, generally, a fluctuation of a birefringence occurs depending on a bend of the optical fiber, and this an interference contrast varies depending on the condition of the insertion. The OCT of the present invention is provided with polarization compensation means such as a Faraday rotator on the side of the light emission of the optical probe, so that the OCT can obtain the stabilized interference output regardless of the state of the bend.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2003
    Assignees: University Hospital of Cleveland, Olympus Optical Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Joseph A. Izatt, Michael V. Sivak, Andrew Rollins, Akihiro Horii, Tadashi Hirata, Shuhei Iizuka