Studying plankton with a digital holographic camera will help ecology

2021-03-15
Scientists from the Laboratory of Radiophysical and Optical Methods for Studying the Environment (TSU Faculty of Radiophysics) have found a way to determine the pollution of water bodies by studying plankton. The main tool is a digital holographic camera, which, placed in the water, can determine the size and shape of plankton and other particles, their speed, the number of individuals, and other parameters. Conclusions about the state of the reservoir and its biological diversity can be drawn from the data obtained.

- To record a hologram, you need to pass a laser beam through the volume of the medium and register it on a charge-coupled-device (CCD) camera. This will be the axial hologram of this volume of the medium, - explained Viktor Dyomin, TSU First Vice-Rector, head of the laboratory. - It differs from ordinary photography in that we can completely restore information about the wave that has passed through the volume, which means that we have all the information about the small particles or organisms that were in this environment.

Read more: http://en.tsu.ru/news/studying-plankton-with-a-digital-holographic-camera-will-help-ecology/