Confocal 3D reflectance imaging through multimode fibers without wavefront shaping

Abstract: Imaging through optical multimode fibers (MMFs) has the potential to enable hair-thin endoscopes that reduce the invasiveness of imaging deep inside tissues and organs. Current approaches predominantly require active wavefront shaping and fluorescent labeling, which limits their use to preclinical applications and frustrates imaging speed. Here we present a computational approach to reconstruct depth-gated confocal images using a raster-scanned, focused input illumination. We demonstrate the compatibility of this approach with quantitative phase, dark-field, and polarimetric imaging. Computational imaging through MMF opens a new pathway for minimally invasive imaging in medical diagnosis and biological investigations.