Boston Micromachines Corporation
Encyclopedia
Boston Micromachines Corporation is a US company operating out of Cambridge, Massachusetts
. Boston Micromachines manufactures and develops MEMS deformable mirror
s to perform open- and closed- loop adaptive optics
. The technology is applied in Beam Shaping, Astronomy
, Vision Science
, and general Microscopy
; any application in need of wavefront
manipulation.
systems. The company also performs research in optical MEMS fabrication.
s can be used in the following disciplines for image enhancement:
, deformable mirror
s can be used to enhance Confocal
techniques such as two-photon excitation fluorescence
(2PEF), second- and/or third-Harmonic Generation (SHG/THG, respectively), Coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy
(CARS), Scanning laser ophthalmoscopy
(SLO), Optical coherence tomography
(OCT) as well as conventional wide-field microscopy. Of particular interest is that deformable mirrors increase the resolution of retina
l images to achieve ~2 µm resolution levels. Photoreceptor cells are around 3 µm in diameter. Without adaptive optics, resolution levels are in the 10-15 µm range. Research using other confocal techniques is currently taking place at such locations as the University of Durham, Harvard University
and Boston University
.
, and other pulse shaping
applications.
Many project deliverables and deformable mirrors are customized for specific applications.
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
. Boston Micromachines manufactures and develops MEMS deformable mirror
Deformable mirror
Deformable mirror represents the most convenient tool for wavefront control and correction of optical aberrations. Deformable mirrors are used in combination with wavefront sensors and real-time control systems in adaptive optics...
s to perform open- and closed- loop adaptive optics
Adaptive optics
Adaptive optics is a technology used to improve the performance of optical systems by reducing the effect of wavefront distortions. It is used in astronomical telescopes and laser communication systems to remove the effects of atmospheric distortion, and in retinal imaging systems to reduce the...
. The technology is applied in Beam Shaping, Astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
, Vision Science
Vision science
Vision science is the science dedicated to the interdisciplinary study of visual perception and the visual system. Vision scientists study various aspects of vision from the perspectives of cognitive psychology, neuroscience, computer science, psychophysics, and ophthalmology.- See also :* Visual...
, and general Microscopy
Microscopy
Microscopy is the technical field of using microscopes to view samples and objects that cannot be seen with the unaided eye...
; any application in need of wavefront
Wavefront
In physics, a wavefront is the locus of points having the same phase. Since infrared, optical, x-ray and gamma-ray frequencies are so high, the temporal component of electromagnetic waves is usually ignored at these wavelengths, and it is only the phase of the spatial oscillation that is described...
manipulation.
History
Founded in 1999 by Dr. Thomas Bifano and Paul Bierden(CEO), Boston Micromachines is a provider of advanced MEMS-based mirror products for use in commercial adaptive opticsAdaptive optics
Adaptive optics is a technology used to improve the performance of optical systems by reducing the effect of wavefront distortions. It is used in astronomical telescopes and laser communication systems to remove the effects of atmospheric distortion, and in retinal imaging systems to reduce the...
systems. The company also performs research in optical MEMS fabrication.
Research and Development
Boston Micromachines is funded in part by research programs and develops new products for astronomy, microscopy, pulse shaping, beam shaping, fiber coupling, space optics, retinal imaging and for defense purposes.Applications
Boston Micromachines’ deformable mirrorDeformable mirror
Deformable mirror represents the most convenient tool for wavefront control and correction of optical aberrations. Deformable mirrors are used in combination with wavefront sensors and real-time control systems in adaptive optics...
s can be used in the following disciplines for image enhancement:
Astronomy
Boston Micromachines develops deformable mirrors for telescopes to correct for atmospheric disturbance, in the search for new planets and enhanced images. A project currently taking advantage of BMC's mirror technology is the ViLLaGEs Project at the Lick Observatory.Biological Imaging
Through the use of adaptive opticsAdaptive optics
Adaptive optics is a technology used to improve the performance of optical systems by reducing the effect of wavefront distortions. It is used in astronomical telescopes and laser communication systems to remove the effects of atmospheric distortion, and in retinal imaging systems to reduce the...
, deformable mirror
Deformable mirror
Deformable mirror represents the most convenient tool for wavefront control and correction of optical aberrations. Deformable mirrors are used in combination with wavefront sensors and real-time control systems in adaptive optics...
s can be used to enhance Confocal
Confocal microscopy
Confocal microscopy is an optical imaging technique used to increase optical resolution and contrast of a micrograph by using point illumination and a spatial pinhole to eliminate out-of-focus light in specimens that are thicker than the focal plane. It enables the reconstruction of...
techniques such as two-photon excitation fluorescence
Two-photon excitation microscopy
Two-photon excitation microscopy is a fluorescence imaging technique that allows imaging of living tissue up to a very high depth, that is up to about one millimeter. Being a special variant of the multiphoton fluorescence microscope, it uses red-shifted excitation light which can also excite...
(2PEF), second- and/or third-Harmonic Generation (SHG/THG, respectively), Coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy
Coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy
Coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy, also called Coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering spectroscopy , is a form of spectroscopy used primarily in chemistry, physics and related fields. It is sensitive to the same vibrational signatures of molecules as seen in Raman spectroscopy, typically the...
(CARS), Scanning laser ophthalmoscopy
Scanning laser ophthalmoscopy
Scanning laser ophthalmoscopy is a method of examination of the eye. It uses the technique of confocal laser scanning microscopy for diagnostic imaging of retina or cornea of the human eye....
(SLO), Optical coherence tomography
Optical coherence tomography
Optical coherence tomography is an optical signal acquisition and processing method. It captures micrometer-resolution, three-dimensional images from within optical scattering media . Optical coherence tomography is an interferometric technique, typically employing near-infrared light...
(OCT) as well as conventional wide-field microscopy. Of particular interest is that deformable mirrors increase the resolution of retina
Retina
The vertebrate retina is a light-sensitive tissue lining the inner surface of the eye. The optics of the eye create an image of the visual world on the retina, which serves much the same function as the film in a camera. Light striking the retina initiates a cascade of chemical and electrical...
l images to achieve ~2 µm resolution levels. Photoreceptor cells are around 3 µm in diameter. Without adaptive optics, resolution levels are in the 10-15 µm range. Research using other confocal techniques is currently taking place at such locations as the University of Durham, Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
and Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
.
Laser beam and pulse shaping
Boston Micromachines deformable mirrors are capable of correcting for atmospheric distortion in long distance laser communicationFree-space optical communication
Free-space optical communication is an optical communication technology that uses light propagating in free space to transmit data for telecommunications or computer networking."Free space" means air, outer space, vacuum, or something similar...
, and other pulse shaping
Pulse shaping
In digital telecommunication, pulse shaping is the process of changing the waveform of transmitted pulses. Its purpose is to make the transmitted signal better suited to the communication channel by limiting the effective bandwidth of the transmission. By filtering the transmitted pulses this way,...
applications.
Products
| Actuator Array | 6x6 | 12x12 | 32x32 |
| Actuator Stroke | 1.5-5.5 μm | 1.5 μm | |
| Actuator Pitch | 300-450 μm | 300-350 μm | |
| Aperture | 1.5 - 2.25 mm | 3.3 - 4.95 mm | 9.3 mm |
| Surface Type | Continuous or Segmented | ||
| Mirror Coating | Gold or aluminum | ||
| Average step size | sub nanometer | ||
| Hysteresis | none | ||
| Fill factor | 99% or more | ||
| Mechanical Response Time | 100μs or less (~3.5 kHz) | 20μs or less | |
| Surface Quality | less than 20 NanoMeters (RMS) | ||
| Driver Specifications | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Frame rate | 8 kHz (34 kHz bursts) | up to 60 kHz | |
| Resolution | 14 Bit | ||
| Driver Dimensions | 102 mm x 133 mm x 32 mm | 229 mm x 178 mm x 64 mm | 483 mm x 470 mm x 133 mm |
| Computer Interface | USB 2.0 | PCI card | |
Many project deliverables and deformable mirrors are customized for specific applications.
Management
- Paul Beirden, President and CEO
- Dr. Thomas Bifano. Chief Technology Officer
- Steve Cornelissen, Vice President of Engineering
Awards
- 2010 R&D 100 Awards, Bioscience for MEMS-based Adaptive Optics Optical Coherence Tomography Instrument
- 2009 Dr. Thomas Bifano Awarded Bepi Colombo Prize
- 2007 Micro/Nano 25 Awards, Innovation
- 2003 R&D 100 Award, MEMS Based Adaptive Optics Phoropter
See also
- Wavefront sensorWavefront sensorA wavefront sensor is a device for measuring the aberrations of an optical wavefront. Although an amplitude splitting interferometer such as the Michelson interferometer could be called a wavefront sensor, the term is normally applied to instruments that do not require an unaberrated reference...
- Adaptive opticsAdaptive opticsAdaptive optics is a technology used to improve the performance of optical systems by reducing the effect of wavefront distortions. It is used in astronomical telescopes and laser communication systems to remove the effects of atmospheric distortion, and in retinal imaging systems to reduce the...
- The era of adaptive optics
- Microelectromechanical systemsMicroelectromechanical systemsMicroelectromechanical systems is the technology of very small mechanical devices driven by electricity; it merges at the nano-scale into nanoelectromechanical systems and nanotechnology...
- Deformable mirrorDeformable mirrorDeformable mirror represents the most convenient tool for wavefront control and correction of optical aberrations. Deformable mirrors are used in combination with wavefront sensors and real-time control systems in adaptive optics...