Digital optical phase conjugation for delivering two-dimensional images through turbid media

Abstract

Optical transmission through complex media such as biological tissue is fundamentally limited by multiple light scattering. Precise control of the optical wavefield potentially holds the key to advancing a broad range of light-based techniques and applications for imaging or optical delivery. We present a simple and robust digital optical phase conjugation (DOPC) implementation for suppressing multiple light scattering. Utilizing wavefront shaping via a spatial light modulator (SLM), we demonstrate its turbidity-suppression capability by reconstructing the image of a complex two-dimensional wide-field target through a highly scattering medium. Employing an interferometer with a Sagnac-like ring design, we successfully overcome the challenging alignment and wavefront-matching constraints in DOPC, reflecting the requirement that the forward-and reverse-propagation paths through the turbid medium be identical. By measuring the output response to digital distortion of the SLM write pattern, we validate the sub-wavelength sensitivity of the system.