FIELD: physics.
SUBSTANCE: group of inventions refers to an apparatus and method for implementing an optical coherence tomography device with a full range encoded in a dispersion. An apparatus for optical coherence tomography comprises a light source, a first arm including a first dispersive optical assembly inducing a first amount of dispersion into light, coming from the light source and traversing the first arm, with the first arm configuring one of a sample arm and a reference arm of an interferometer. With that the device comprises a second arm including a second dispersive optical assembly, inducing a second amount of dispersion into light coming from the light source and traversing the second arm, with the second arm configuring the other of the sample arm and reference arm, and the second amount of dispersion being larger than the first amount of dispersion, wherein for any sub-assembly of one or more optical elements of the second dispersive optical assembly an amount of dispersion, induced by the sub-assembly into the light traversing the second arm is different from the first amount of dispersion. Also the apparatus comprises a processing unit which is designed with possibility to process an interferometry signal for performing optical coherence tomography with a full range encoded in the dispersion in the absence of an accurate knowledge of the dispersion imbalance, wherein the interferometric signal is indicative of the imposition of light from the first arm and the light from the second arm.
EFFECT: device and a method for implementing a device for optical coherence tomography are proposed.
7 cl, 5 dwg
