We propose a differential phase contrast microscopy that enables single-shot phase imaging for unstained biological samples. The proposed approach employs a ring-shaped LED array for polarisation multiplexing illumination and a polarisation camera for image acquisition. As such, multiple images of different polarisation angles can be simultaneously captured with a single shot. Through polarisation demultiplexing, the sample phase can therefore be recovered from the single-shot measurement. Both simulations and experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of the approach. We also demonstrate that ring-shaped illumination enables higher contrast and lower-distortion imaging results than disk-shaped illumination does. The proposed single-shot approach potentially enables phase contrast imaging for live cell samples in vitro. Lay Description: We propose a microscopy that enables imaging of transparent samples, unstained cells, etc. We demonstrate that the proposed method enables higher contrast and lower-distortion imaging results than conventional methods, and significantly improves imaging efficiency. The proposed method potentially enables dynamic imaging for live cell samples in vitro.
Keywords: differential phase contrast microscopy; polarisation multiplexing; ring‐shaped illumination; single‐shot imaging.
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