Hyperspectral imaging has traditionally been employed for environmental monitoring where large swaths of land have been surveyed miles above from air planes. With the capability of resolving minute spectral changes in space, different types of vegetation and soils could be identified over large areas, which has been useful to recognize the prevalence of various crop diseases. Today, the method is emerging as a potential tool for medical purposes due to its non-invasive nature and ability to provide highly spatially and spectrally resolved images. We are developing this method to be employed as a clinical tool in the operating theatre as well as a complementary method in better diagnosis of tumor borders in vivo and to determine oxygenation in reconstructive surgery.

Our hyperspectral camera has a spectral sensitivity between 450 – 1700 nm (InGaAs detector), which allows light to non-invasively probe depths down to a few mm in human tissue. With an added spatial resolution of around 50 um, it becomes powerful tool with many relevant applications within the medical field.