Design of Scanning Fiber Micro-Cantilever based Catheter for Ultra-Small Endoscopes

The continuous research into optics and micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMSs) enables the fabrication of optical scanners having diameters as small as few millimeters. As a result, medical practitioners can image smaller areas of the body that were inaccessible in the past. The overarching goal of this work has been to develop a sub-millimeter sized optical scanner that provides a foundation for a miniaturized endoscope able to image previously inaccessible luminal organs in real time. The proposed scanner consisted of a vibrating optical fiber that carried laser light to the target imaging area, with a peripheric ring of more optical fibers to capture the backscattered reflected light within the same device. The desired vibratory motion of the scanning cantilevered fiber was obtained using an electro-thermal actuator which periodically excited the distal end of the scanning fiber to provide movement.