Vibrational imaging based on stimulated Raman scattering microscopy

A stimulated Raman scattering microscope with near-infrared picosecond laser pulses at high repetition rates (76 MHz) and radio-frequency lock-in detection is accomplished. Based on stimulated Raman loss detection, we demonstrate noninvasive point-by-point vibrational mapping of chemical and biological samples with high sensitivity and without the requirement for labeling of the sample with natural or artificial fluorophores. We experimentally demonstrate a major benefit of this technique, which is the capability to respond exclusively to the linear Raman-resonance properties of the sample, thus allowing a direct quantitative interpretation of image contrast in terms of the number density of Raman-active modes.