Single microparticle characterization using multi-wavelength lens-free imaging

Abstract

Holographic imaging captures an interference pattern, effectively encoding an object‘s properties such as size, shape and refractive index in the hologram. Lens-free holographic imaging offers a scalable solution with large field of view to analyze microparticles or cells in high-throughput biological imaging applications. We studied characterization of single particles based on their holographic fingerprint using multi-wavelength illumination based lens-free holography. Deciphering this information directly in the hologram domain with our multi-wavelength approach allows for reliable estimation of object refractive index along with its size without ambiguity. This work provides a path forward for lens-free imaging-based microparticle characterization that can prove useful in biological studies such as cell analysis and characterization.