INFRARED-IMAGING SYSTEM FOR NONINVASIVE THERMOMETRY

RLS ENTERPRISES, LTD., HAS DEVELOPED AND PATENTED AND INFRARED (IR)-IMAGING TECHNOLOGY THAT DIFFERS FROM OTHERS IN THAT IT IS A PHOTONIC, NOT A THERMAL PROCESS. IT IS CHARACTERIZED BY ELECTRONIC TRANSITION PRODUCED BY THE ABSORPTION OF IR PHOTONS THAT CAN PROVIDE A MICROSECOND-RANGE RESPONSE TIME. RESOLUTION IS THEORETICALLY AT THE MOLECULAR-SIZE LEVEL AND IS LIMITED BY THE OPTICS AND NOISE LEVEL RATHER THAN THE MATERIAL BEING USED. IT DOES NOT REQUIRE CRYOGENIC COOLING AS IN MOST MECHANICAL SCANNING, IMAGING TUBE, AND FOCAL PLANE ARRAY TECHNOLOGIES IN THE 10-MICRON BAND. THE LONG-TERM OBJECTIVES AND SPECIFIC AIMS OF THIS PROJECTARE TO DEVELOP A NONINVASIVE THERMOMETRY DEVICE FOR THE ACCURATE MEASUREMENT OF TEMPERATURE DISTRIBUTION IN TUMOR AND NORMAL HUMAN TISSUES DURING HYPOTHERMIA TREATMENT WITH A SENSITIVITY OF 0.1 DEGREE C IN PHASE I. OPTIMIZATION GOALSOF PHASE II ARE TO ACHIEVE A FINAL SENSITIVITY OF 0.01 DEGREE C. THIS NEW PROCESS CAN ATTAIN A SENSITIVITY OF 10 MINUS 14 W SEC/CM2 AND HAS BEEN DEMONSTRATED OFR A 10-MICRON VERSION IN THE LABORATORY. THIS IS AN INCREASE 10 TIMES OVER THE DETECTABILITY OF EXISTING IR-IMAGING AND DETECTION SYSTEMS