Three-dimensional thermophotonic image optimization modalities of truncated correlation photothermal coherence tomography

Truncated correlation photothermal coherence tomography (TC-PCT) is a pulse-compression, matched-filter-based photothermal diffusion-wave imaging modality with a proven track record in non-destructive evaluation of biomedical, dental, art-object and industrial applications. This is a study of the effect thermal transient truncation plays in the TC-PCT algorithm. It introduces a new phase channel which was coined the name Linear Iso Phase (LIOP) and improves the conventional TC-PCT phase by redevising its matched-filter sampling scheme and removing the effect of circular aliasing artifacts introduced in the frequency-domain-transformed cross-correlation (CC) calculations. A previously introduced computationally simplified adaptation to TC-PCT based on conventional CC signal processing, named enhanced truncated correlation photothermal coherence tomography (eTC-PCT), which does not utilize thermal transient truncation is also investigated: The TC-PCT and eTC-PCT algorithms and the LIOP channel are used to produce three-dimensional reconstructions of a complex multi-layered marquetry art sample and a tooth with a bacterial-induced lesion.