Three-dimensional microscopy through liquid-lens axial scanning

Abstract

In this contribution we propose the use of a liquid lens (LL) to perform three-dimensional (3D) imaging. Our proposed method consists on inserting the LL at the aperture stop of telecentric microscopes. The sequential depth images of 3D samples are obtained by tuning the focal length of LL. Our experimental results demonstrate that fast-axial scanning of microscopic images is obtained without varying neither the resolution capability nor the magnification of the imaging system. Furthermore, this non-mechanical approach can be easily implemented in any commercial optical microscope.