Development of a high power supercontinuum source in the 1.7 µm wavelength region for highly penetrative ultrahigh-resolution optical coherence tomography.

We developed a high power supercontinuum source at a center wavelength of 1.7 µm to demonstrate highly penetrative ultrahigh-resolution optical coherence tomography (UHR-OCT). A single-wall carbon nanotube dispersed in polyimide film was used as a transparent saturable absorber in the cavity configuration and a high-repetition-rate ultrashort-pulse fiber laser was realized. The developed SC source had an output power of 60 mW, a bandwidth of 242 nm full-width at half maximum, and a repetition rate of 110 MHz. The average power and repetition rate were approximately twice as large as those of our previous SC source [20]. Using the developed SC source, UHR-OCT imaging was demonstrated. A sensitivity of 105 dB and an axial resolution of 3.2 µm in biological tissue were achieved. We compared the UHR-OCT images of some biological tissue samples measured with the developed SC source, the previous one, and one operating in the 1.3 µm wavelength region. We confirmed that the developed SC source had improved sensitivity and penetration depth for low-water-absorption samples.