Hyperspectral Fourier transform spectrometer for reflection spectroscopy and spectral self-interference fluorescence microscopy.

A hyperspectral Fourier transform spectrometer has been developed for studying biological material bound to optically reflecting surfaces. This instrument has two modes of operation: a white-light reflection mode and a spectral self-interference fluorescence mode. With the combined capability, information about the conformation of an ensemble of biomolecules may be determined. To the best of our knowledge, ours is the first report of this hybrid white-light reflection, spectral self-interference fluorescence measurement with any type of hyperspectral imager. The measurement technique is presented along with a full description of the system, including theoretical performance projections. Proof-of-principle measurements of artificial samples are shown, and the results are discussed.