Mid-infrared microscopy via position correlations of undetected photons

Abstract

Quantum imaging with undetected photons (QIUP) has recently emerged as a new powerful imaging tool. Exploiting the spatial entanglement of photon pairs, it allows decoupling of the sensing and detection wavelengths, facilitating imaging in otherwise challenging spectral regions by leveraging mature silicon-based detection technology. All existing implementations of QIUP have so far utilised the momentum correlations within the biphoton states produced by spontaneous parametric downconversion. Here, for the first time, we implement and examine theoretically and numerically the complementary scenario - utilising the tight position correlations formed within photon pairs at birth. This image plane arrangement facilitates high resolution imaging with comparative experimental ease, and we experimentally show resolutions below 10 μ m at a sensing wavelength of 3.7 μ m. Moreover, we present a quantitative numerical model predicting the imaging capabilities of QIUP for a wide range of parameters. Finally, by imaging mouse heart tissue at the mid-IR to reveal morphological features on the cellular level, we further demonstrate the viability of this technique for the life sciences. These results offer new perspectives on the capabilities of QIUP for label-free widefield mid-IR microscopy, enabling real-world biomedical as well as industrial imaging applications.