A thermal light source technique for optical coherence tomography

A new technique for optical coherence tomography imaging with spatially low-coherent light sources is presented. In this technique the low coherence interferometry (LCI) depth-scan is performed by the image of the light source, and, therefore, simultaneously by a multitude of mutually incoherent LCI channels, to increase the probe beam power. Thermal light sources have the advantage of extremely low time-coherence with coherence lengths in the 1 μm range. The performance of a tungsten halogen lamp with a thermal spectrum and a xenon arc lamp with broadened spectral lines superimposed on a thermal continuum are compared.