Single-Source FM SRS with Pixel-to-Pixel Contrast Improvement

Stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) microscopy is a powerful tool for in vivo diagnostic imaging due to the chemically-selective and label-free nature of the Raman process. In contrast to coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) SRS is often described as being background-free, although the SRS process can suffer from parasitic effects such as cross-phase modulation, two-photon absorption and thermal lensing with according distortion of the SRS signal and a corresponding reduction of the image contrast [1].