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Quantum light for biomedical imaging

Published Jun 9, 2021• 0 citations
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Abstract

e see objects when the light they reflect reaches our eyes and starts a cascade of complex chemical processes.To trigger these processes, we have two main types of receptor in our eye that help us to see -cones and rods.Rods are very sensitive to light levels but cannot process any information on colours, whereas cones have different responses to different wavelengths of light and are what allow us to see in colour.

DOI
10.32907/ro-123-1360658996

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e see objects when the light they reflect reaches our eyes and starts a cascade of complex chemical processes.To trigger these processes, we have two main types of receptor in our eye that help us to see -cones and rods.Rods are very sensitive to light levels but cannot process any information on colours, whereas cones have different responses to different wavelengths of light and are what allow us to see in colour.
The evolving understanding of the limits of human visual perception has advanced the development of optical devices that not only correct visual defects but also help manage changes in certain eye structures. As modern optical technologies allow precise control of the quantum properties of light, recent endeavours have started testing the quantum capabilities of human eye perception, proving that they can detect single photons. This paves the way for the application of quantum metrology and cryptography to medical imaging, with potential increase in precision and security.
The two striking components of retina, i.e., the light sensitive neural layer in the eye, by which it responds to light are (the three types of) color sensitive Cones and color insensitive Rods (which outnumber the cones 20:1). The interaction between electromagnetic radiation and these photoreceptors (causing transitions between cis- and trans- states of rhodopsin molecules in the latter) offers a prime example of physical processes at the nano-bio interface. After a brief review of the basic facts about vision, we propose a quantum mechanical model (paralleling the Jaynes-Cummings model (JCM) of interaction of light with matter) of early vision describing the interaction of light with the two states of rhodopsin mentioned above. Here we model the early essential steps in vision incorporating, separately, the two well-known features of retinal transduction (converting light to neural signals): small numbers of cones respond to bright light (large number of photons) and large numbers of rods respond to faint light (small number of photons) with an amplification scheme. An outline of the method of solution of these respective models based on quantum density matrix is also indicated. This includes a brief overview of the theory, based on JCM, of signal amplification required for the perception of faint light. We envision this methodology, which brings a novel quantum approach to modeling neural activity, to be a useful paradigm in developing a better understanding of key visual processes than is possible with currently available models that completely ignore quantum effects at the relevant neural level.
The retinal image quality in the human eye have been measured by using a hybrid optical digital method, consisting in the recording and processing of retinal images of a point test after reflection in the retina. The method allows one to obtain accurate data on the modulation transfer function of the eye, which can be directly used in vision research and practical optical engineering studies. The technique has been used to obtain image quality results both in the fovea and the periphery under different experimental conditions. These results have some implications to retinal sampling: in natural viewing the eye's optics provides a good protection against aliasing (spatial undersampling) in the fovea, but leaving the cone mosaic least protected at eccentricities around 10 to 20 degrees. Experimental systems based on this optical digital technique might have potential applications to obtain high resolution fundus images in the living eye.