Photoacoustic Tomography for Biomedical Applications

Abstract

Photoacoustic tomography (PAT) has quickly become one of the fastest growing biomedical imaging modalities, since its first demonstration of functional imaging in small animal about a decade ago. Combining optical excitation with acoustic detection, PAT can provide detailed color pictures of tissues deep into the body without the radiation hazard of X‐rays, the lack of soft‐tissue contrast in ultrasonography, or the superficial penetration limitation of optical microscopy. This article will present cutting‐edge PAT technologies, focusing on their preclinical and clinical applications in biomedicine.