Advanced Time-Correlated Single Photon Counting Techniques (eBook)

Wolfgang Becker is a specialist of optical short-time measurement techniques and obtained his PhD 1979 in Berlin, Germany. Since 1993 he is the head of Becker & Hickl GmbH in Berlin. His field of interest is development and application of time-correlated single photon counting techniques. He is an amatuer astronomer and telescope maker and likes cats, skiing and beach volleyball.

Preface 5
Contents 7
List of Technical Terms and Symbols 12
1 Optical Signal Recording 19
2 Overview of Photon Counting Techniques 28
2.1 Steady-State Photon Counting 28
2.2 Gated Photon Counting 29
2.3 Multichannel Scalers 33
2.4 Time-Correlated Single Photon Counting (TCSPC) 37
3 Multidimensional TCSPC Techniques 43
3.1 Multidetector TCSPC 45
3.2 Multiplexed TCSPC 49
3.3 Sequential Recording Techniques 51
3.4 Scanning Techniques 53
3.5 Imaging by Position-Sensitive Detection 55
3.6 Time-Tag Recording 59
3.7 Multimodule Systems 61
4 Building Blocks of Advanced TCSPC Devices 63
4.1 Constant-Fraction Discriminators 63
4.2 Time Measurement Block 66
5 Application of Modern TCSPC Techniques 77
5.1 Classic Fluorescence Lifetime Experiments 77
5.2 Multispectral Fluorescence Lifetime Experiments 100
5.3 Excitation-Wavelength Multiplexing 103
5.4 Transient Fluorescence Lifetime Phenomena 106
5.5 Diffuse Optical Tomography (DOT) and Photon Migration 113
5.6 Autofluorescence of Biological Tissue 137
5.7 TCSPC Laser Scanning Microscopy 145
5.8 Other TCSPC Microscopy Techniques 179
5.9 Picosecond Photon Correlation 185
5.10 Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy 192
5.11 Combinations of Correlation Techniques 203
5.12 The Photon Counting Histogram 207
5.13 Time-Resolved Single Molecule Spectroscopy 209
5.14 Miscellaneous TCSPC Applications 217
6 Detectors for Photon Counting 229
6.1 Detector Principles 229
6.2 Characterisation of Detectors 238
6.3 Measurement of PMT Parameters 250
6.4 Photon Counting Performance of Selected Detectors 258
7 Practice of TCSPC Experiments 278
7.1 Excitation Sources 278
7.2 Optical Systems 283
7.3 Detector Control and Overload Protection 317
7.4 Generating the Synchronisation Signal 319
7.5 System Connections 322
7.6 Safety Considerations 330
7.7 Setting the TCSPC System Parameters 332
7.8 Differential Nonlinearity 345
7.9 Counting Loss in TCSPC Systems 347
7.10 Calibration of the Time Scale 360
8 Final Remarks 362
9 References 365
Index 402