New lens-free microscope yields 3D images on a chip

For four centuries, microscopes have been lens-centric devices used by scientists, doctors and CSI-type TV show actors.
And as microscopes have been used to observe smaller and smaller objects, they have grown larger and larger and more and more complex.
Researchers at UCLA have created a new device that fits in the palm of your hand and renders hi-res 3D images of extremely small objects on a microchip.
"This research clearly shows the potential of lens-free computational microscopy," said Aydogan Ozcan, senior author of the research and an associate professor of electrical engineering at UCLA's Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science. "Wonderful progress has been made in recent years to miniaturize life-sciences tools with microfluidic and lab-on-a-chip technologies, but until now optical microscopy has not kept pace with the miniaturization trend."
The new microscope uses tomographic imaging, that is, light is rotated on the object at various angles to create the 3D image. This process provides a wider field of view as well as depth of field.
Because of the automation involved in on-chip systems, scientific work could be sped up significantly, which might have a great impact in the fields of cell and developmental biology. In addition, the small size not only has great potential for miniaturizing systems but also leads to cost savings on equipment, according to the researchers.
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