Simple high-speed confocal line-scanning microscope.

Using a line scan camera and an acousto-optic deflector (AOD), we constructed a high-speed confocal laser line-scanning microscope that can generate confocal images (512 x 512 pixels) with up to 191 frames/s without any mechanically moving parts. The line scanner consists of an AOD and a cylindrical lens, which creates a line focus sweeping over the sample. The measured resolutions in z (depth), x (perpendicular to line focus), and y (direction of line focus) directions are 3.3 mum, 0.7 mum and 0.9 mum, respectively, with a 50x objective lens. This confocal microscope may be useful for analyzing fast phenomena during biological and chemical interactions and for fast 3D image reconstruction.