Real-Time Super-Resolution Imaging System Based on Zero-Shot Learning for Infrared Nondestructive Testing

Infrared thermography (IRT) and photothermal coherence tomography (PCT) exhibit potential in non-destructive testing and biomedical fields. However, the inevitable heat diffusion significantly affects the sensitivity and resolution of IRT and PCT. Conventional image processing techniques rely on capturing complete thermal sequences, which limits their ability to achieve real-time processes. Here, we construct a real-time super-resolution imaging system based on zero-shot learning strategy for the non-invasive infrared thermography and photothermal coherence tomography techniques. To validate the feasibility and accuracy of this super-resolution imaging system, IRT systems were employed to test several industrial samples and one biomedical sample. The results demonstrated high contrast in the region of interest (ROI) and uncovered valuable information otherwise obscured by thermal diffusion. Furthermore, three-dimensional photothermal coherence tomography was used to validate the excellent denoising and deconvolution capabilities of the proposed real-time super-resolution imaging system.