Confocal multipoint multiphoton excitation microscope with microlens and pinhole arrays

We show the first experimental results with a confocal multipoint multiphoton excitation microscope, where a confocal pinhole-array is used to enhance the three-dimensional spatial resolution and the depth-penetration property. Comparisons of images obtained with and without the pinhole-array show the enhancement of the contrast of fluorescence images and the sharper depth-discrimination property in the confocal system. In the experimental result, the longer penetration depth was obtained with the confocal system, in contrast to results with a typical multiphoton excitation microscope with single-focus scanning. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.