Patent ID: 8792102

Claim:
A detection system for interferometric spectral imaging of a two-dimensional (2D) array of samples, comprising: a broadband light source; a detection surface having a plurality of sample fields configured to receive a two-dimensional array of samples, wherein one or more portions of the detection surface comprise a metal film having gold, and wherein the broadband light source is configured to provide light to the detection surface at an incidence angle configured to produce a surface plasmon resonance phenomenon; a phase difference generator configured to resolve the sample fields of the plurality of sample fields, wherein the phase difference generator is configured to generate a phase difference in a reference beam or a resultant sample beam by introducing a path length difference between the resultant sample beam and the reference beam; an interferometer configured to combine the reference beam and the resultant sample beam; and an imaging spectrometer comprising a spectrally separated two-dimensional detector configured to receive the combined reference and resultant sample beams, and wherein the imaging spectrometer is configured to discriminate between two or more spatially separated points in the two-dimensional array of samples based on the combined reference and resultant sample beams.