Uniwersytet Mikolaja Kopernika w Toruniu (NCU), PL

About
The Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, founded in 1945, is the biggest university in northern Poland, comprising 14 different faculties covering disciplines from science to humanities. The rich education, offered to about 40,000 students, includes 50 fields of studies, 100 specialisations, over 130 graduate and post-graduate courses and 16 doctoral schools.
CHARISMA will be managed by the Institute of Physics in close collaboration with the Institute for the Study, Restoration and Conservation of Cultural Heritage of the same university. The Institute of Physics consists of 8 research departments and offers degree programs in fields of physics (theoretical, experimental, medical and optoelectronics), technical physics (incl. informatics) and robotics. The Institute also hosts the State Laboratory of Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics (FAMO). Both institutions are members of the National Laboratory for Quantum Technologies co-funded by the European Union.
The project will be developed in the Group of Medical Physics, involved in developing Spectral domain Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) since 1998. At present, the group is developing new OCT techniques for both medical and cultural heritage applications.

Relevant experience and role
A major task of Nicolaus Copernicus University in CHARISMA project will be to set-up a mobile, high resolution Spectral domain Optical Coherence Tomography instrument dedicated to art examination.
OCT is a non-invasive and non-contact method of optical sectioning of partially transparent objects with a micrometer axial resolution. The method utilizes near infrared light of low intensity of a few miliwatts to obtain cross-sectional images of various objects. The images collected side-by-side are used to extract the volume information about internal structure of objects. The technique is under development since 1994, mostly for medicine diagnostics, especially in ophthalmology. Over this time it was implemented as a routine examination method and many instruments are now commercially available. Since the OCT have reached certain level of technological advancement, its application to material sciences was straightforward.
The applicability of OCT to examination of objects of art is in focus since 2003. Until now, OCT has been employed in the investigation and conservation of artworks to: examine varnish and glaze layers of easel paintings, analyze underdrawings, examine historic jades, ceramics and glass objects, inspect atmospheric corrosion of stained glass, and precisely image punchwork.
Another group of applications is related to monitoring various dynamic processes such as the drying of a varnish layer, laser ablation of varnish, and for the tracing of environmentally-induced deformations of paintings on canvas.
Lately OCT was also used as a supporting tool for Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy. Complete list of papers devoted to all these modalities are available from the dedicated website http://www.oct4art.eu.
Until now for the aim of examination of objects of art multi-purpose, medium resolution instruments were mostly used. If the high resolution tomographs (axial resolution in air better then 3 μm) are considered, they are laboratory mounted, usually on optical tables.
The novel instrument will be compact, easily transferable to the site of the object being investigated, and optimised for the highest available resolution. The device will scan the object in 2D providing data in 3D imaging. A dedicated data acquisition and processing software will be also developed. Emphasis will be on easiness of transfer of the device including its re-installation on-site and its mechanical stability. The prototype will be equipped with sensor of temperature and humidity, as well as with a small build-in camera to document examination conditions and exact location of scanning. In parallel to hardware, a software package will be developed. After completion, the performance and properties of the instrument will be demonstrated in collaboration with partners and users towards the following applications: imaging and thickness measurements of varnish and glaze layers, examination of range and level of water corrosion in glasses, monitoring of restoration processes such as varnish removal and laser cleaning.
The development of the OCT instrument will be followed by a two-days training event (Training on application of Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) to structural analysis), dedicated to present traditional and innovative applications to potential users.

Website address:

www.umk.pl/en
www.fizyka.umk.pl/fizyka_en
www.fizyka.umk.pl/~fizmed
www.fizyka.umk.pl/~ptarg

Team Leader

Name: Prof Piotr Targowski, PhD
Address: Institute of Physics, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Grudziadzka 5, 87-100 Torun, PL
E-mail: [email protected]