Sandeep Menon Perinchery

Investigation of the effects of LIFT printing with a KrF-excimer laser on thermally sensitive electrically conductive adhesives

Laser induced forward transfer is an emerging material deposition technology. We investigated the feasibility of this technique for printing thermally sensitive, electrically conductive adhesives with and without using an intermediate dynamic release layer. A 248nm KrF-excimer laser was used to print the epoxy-based conductive adhesives containing silver flakes down to 75μm dot size. The process is particularly relevant for realizing electrical connections to surface mount devices in the microelectronics industry. Characterization of the printed materials was analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, four-point electrical measurements, die-shear testing and temperature shock testing, to establish that the properties of the adhesive were not affected by direct or indirect laser irradiation. The lack of degradation by the laser onto the adhesives confirms the potential of this technique for interconnection applications. cop. 2014 Astro Ltd.

Reliability investigations on LIFT-printed isotropic conductive adhesive joints for system-in-foil applications

The reliability of a commercially available isotropic conductive adhesive (ICA) deposited via laser induced forward transfer (LIFT) printing is reported. ICAs are particularly important for surfacemount device (SMD) integration onto low-cost, large-area system-in-foil (SiF) applications such as radio frequency identification (RFID) transponder tags. For such tags, and for SiF in general, the reliability of the printed interconnects under harsh circumstances is critical. In this study, the reliability of surface mounted resistors bonded onto screen-printed conductive circuitry on polymer foil was assessed. The prepared samples were subjected to thermal shock testing (TST), accelerated humidity testing (AHT) and flexural testing, while electrical measurements were conducted at regular intervals. Die shear testingwas performed to evaluate the bond strength. The reliability characteristics of the LIFT-printed sampleswere benchmarked against current industry standard stencil printing process. Finally, the applicability of the LIFT–ICA process for practical applications is demonstrated using RFID transponder integration and testing.

Fiber pixelated image database

Abstract. Imaging of physically inaccessible parts of the body such as the colon at micron-level resolution is highly important in diagnostic medical imaging. Though flexible endoscopes based on the imaging fiber bundle are used for such diagnostic procedures, their inherent honeycomb-like structure creates fiber pixelation effects. This impedes the observer from perceiving the information from an image captured and hinders the direct use of image processing and machine intelligence techniques on the recorded signal. Significant efforts have been made by researchers in the recent past in the development and implementation of pixelation removal techniques. However, researchers have often used their own set of images without making source data available which subdued their usage and adaptability universally. A database of pixelated images is the current requirement to meet the growing diagnostic needs in the healthcare arena. An innovative fiber pixelated image database is presented, which consists of pixelated images that are synthetically generated and experimentally acquired. Sample space encompasses test patterns of different scales, sizes, and shapes. It is envisaged that this proposed database will alleviate the current limitations associated with relevant research and development and would be of great help for researchers working on comb structure removal algorithms.

Imaging behind opaque obstacle: a potential method for guided in vitro needle placement

We report a simple real time optical imaging concept using an axicon lens to image the object kept behind opaque obstacles in free space. The proposed concept underlines the importance and advantages of using an axicon lens compared to a conventional lens to image behind the obstacle. The potential of this imaging concept is demonstrated by imaging the insertion of surgical needle in biological specimen in real time, without blocking the field of view. It is envisaged that this proposed concepts and methodology can make a telling impact in a wide variety of areas especially for diagnostics, therapeutics and microscopy applications.

Variable resolution imaging fiber probe using digital spatial light modulator

Flexible fiber optic imaging systems including fiber optic confocal probes have found tremendous significance in the recent past for its applications in high resolution imaging. However, motorized stage is required for scanning the sample or tip of the fiber in fiber based confocal probes. In this context, we propose a fiber probe confocal system using digital spatial light modulator devoid of using a mechanical scanning stage. Each fiberlet in the image fiber acts not only as a light conduit but also as a confocal pinhole. The paper also introduces the variation in the contrast by varying the number of illuminated fiberlets which effectively implies variation in the effective pinhole size. This approach has enabled the probe to act as an imaging unit with resolution that can be controlled and varied from a wide-field to a confocal.

Fiber optic probe for region of interest (ROI) selective time averaged multi-fluorescence imaging

Time averaged imaging is one of the widely used methods to achieve improved image quality, used in different types of microscopic methods. Time averaged imaging refers to adjusting the exposure time of the imaging system to obtain optimal images. In state of the art microscopes, the region of interest (ROI) of illumination beam for time averaged imaging can be selected to be of regular shapes such as circle or rectangle. This forces smallest possible ROI to be larger than the actual sample’s ROI which can be of a specific shape with complex contours. In this context, we present a flexible fiber bundle based illumination probe capable of illuminating samples of irregular shapes for time averaged imaging. Further, this probe is capable of multi-wavelength illumination, hence can be used for multi-fluorescence imaging. The fiber probe with features such as region selective and multi- wavelength illumination allows it to be used for optimal imaging of multi-fluorescence sample.

DMD based digital speckle illumination for high resolution imaging

Spatially non-uniform illumination patterns have shown significant potential to improve the imaging. Recent developments in the patterned illumination microscopy have demonstrated that the use of an optical speckle as an illumination pattern significantly improves the imaging resolution at the same time reducing the computational overheads. We present a DMD based method for generation of digital speckle pattern. The generated digital speckle and uniform white light illumination are used as two illuminations to acquire images. The image reconstruction algorithm for blind structured illumination microscopy is used to get the high resolution image. Our approach does not require any calibration step or stringent control of the illumination, and dramatically simplifies the experimental set-up.

Microscopy using randomized speckle illumination

It is well known for structured illumination microscopy (SIM) that the lateral resolution by a factor of two beyond the classical diffraction limit is achieved using spatially structured illumination in wide-field fluorescence microscope. In the state of art SIM systems, grating patterns are generally generated by physical gratings or by spatial light modulators such as digital micro mirrors (DMD), liquid crystal displays (LCD). In this study, using a combination of LCD and ground glasses, size controlled randomized speckle patterns are generated as an illumination source for the microscope. Proof of concept of using speckle illumination in SIM configuration is tested by imaging fixed BPAE cells.

Imaging objects behind small obstacles using axicon lens

Axicon lenses are conical prisms, which are known to focus a light source to a line comprising of multiple points along the optical axis. In this study, we analyze the potential of axicon lenses to view, image and record the object behind opaque obstacles in free space. The advantage of an axicon lens over a regular lens is demonstrated experimentally. Parameters such as obstacle size, object and the obstacle position in the context of imaging behind obstacles are tested using Zemax optical simulation. This proposed concept can be easily adapted to most of the optical imaging methods and microscopy modalities.

Targeted illumination and tracking using optical fiber probe for optogenetics application

There was a renewed interest, during the recent years, in the imaging and tracking of targeted cells or organelles for a variety of biomedical and lab-on a chip applications that include particles movement. However, nonspecific illumination during tracking can have adverse effects such as heating, reduced image contrast and photo bleaching. In fact, current available tracking and imaging systems are unable to selectively illuminate the particle being tracked. To fill this void, we have developed a fiber optics based probe system incorporating a spatial light modulator (SLM) and an imaging fiber bundle for selective illumination on the targeted particle. A GRIN lens is attached at the distal endface of the image fiber bundle for optimised illumination and collection. A tracking algorithm is developed in order to enable controlled illumination through SLM to target the illumination point or location in accordance with the particle movement and size variation. Further with this probe, particles can be illuminated with light pulses of controllable duty cycle and frequency. The proposed methodology and developed probe have good significance and expected to find potential applications areas such as optogenetics, cell signalling studies, and lab-on a chip systems.