Patent ID: 7838816

Claim:
An apparatus configured for confocal imaging of a specimen surface of a non-flat specimen, said apparatus having an optical axis and a predetermined lateral resolution and comprising a coherent light source for producing at least one light beam; imaging optics configured to focus the at least one light beam into a corresponding focused spot at a desired location on the specimen surface of the non-flat specimen; and a detector having an integration time and configured to receive and detect light reflected from the specimen surface, wherein said imaging optics comprises at least one optical component located so that the light reflected from the specimen surface passes therethrough on its way to the detector, said optical component being movable so as to move the focused spot, within a range of movement, to a number of distinct locations close to the desired location in a plane perpendicular to the optical axis, within said integration time of the detector, to provide a plurality of independent speckle configurations, each independent speckle configuration corresponding to a respective one of the distinct locations of the focused spot, wherein the detector is configured for integrating the plurality of independent speckle configurations within the integration time to provide an integrated signal corresponding to the desired spot.