A reflectance spectrofluorimeter for real-time spectral diagnosis of disease

We have developed a portable multiexcitation dye laser system pumped by a 308 nm excimer laser, which can collect fluorescence spectra at 11 excitation wavelengths and a white light reflectance spectrum in less than 200 ms. The system is designed to be used in a hospital setting for in vivo tissue analysis based on fluorescence and reflectance spectroscopy. A specially designed optical fiber probe with SMA couplers facilitates easy alignment, important in a clinical setting. An intensified charge coupled device camera provides fast data acquisition with large signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio. The optical and electronic systems are controlled with LABVIEW, which is well suited for real time analysis, to extract diagnostic information. We present typical spectra that demonstrate the large excitation-emission wavelength range over which spectra can be acquired with very good S/N ratios.