Disturbing interference patterns in femtosecond stimulated Raman microscopy
30-Sep-2009
Journal of Raman Spectroscopy, 2009, DOI: 10.1002/jrs.2488, Volume 41, Issue 6, pages 609–613 published on 30.09.2009
Journal of Raman Spectroscopy, online article
Journal of Raman Spectroscopy, online article
Femtosecond stimulated Raman microscopy (FSRM) is an upcoming technique in nonlinear microscopy which facilitates rapid chemical mapping. It employs femtosecond white-light pulses as probe pulses and intense picosecond pulses as pump pulses. Stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) occurs at the focus of a scanning microscope. Chemical constituents in the sample are identified via their Raman signatures. In this article, disturbing interference patterns in FSRM are reported. They are caused by a broadening of the pump pulse due to nonlinear interactions in the focal region of the microscope and reduce the signal-to-noise ratio. The properties of these modulations are explored, and the methods to suppress them are presented