OPTRA proposes research leading to a new non-invasive technique for measuring intraocular distances. This will provide such data as cornea thickness, ocular lens thickness, cornea-to-retina distance and, possibly, the thickness of the retina. These data may be provided as a function of direction relative to a fixed optical axis. It will be one of our ultimate goals to map out a contour of the fundus with better than 50 micron height resolution. The novelty of the proposed technique lies in the use of the wavelength tuning of a long coherence length laser diode to generate an interferogram which contains the encoded data on the locations of the various reflective surfaces within the eye. By using this technique in conjunction with the use of the anterior cornea as a reference surface, no moving parts are needed and there is no need to maintain interferometric stability between the source/detector module (i.e. the sensor itself) and the eye. This, in turn, makes it feasible to use the instrument in a clinical setting -possibly even being hand-held. All of the data processing can easily be done in a PC with a plug-in card, which would provide power to the sensor head.
