A new method for the acquisition of arterial pulse wave using self-mixing interferometry

•A method for measuring the arterial pulse wave using SMI is proposed.•The measurements are performed over the fingernail.•A fringe counting algorithm is proposed to deal with the speckle on the signal.•Measurements show good agreement with some commercial devices.

In this paper we present a technique based on self-mixing interferometry as a method for the acquisition and reconstruction of the arterial pulse wave. A modification of the classic fringe counting reconstruction algorithm is proposed to deal with some of the problems caused by biological tissue surface roughness, therefore allowing a reconstruction of the arterial displacement with a resolution of 400 nm. The traits of the arterial pulse wave have been retrieved with high detail, allowing their interpretation by a skilled practitioner. The heart beat measurements show a good agreement when compared to the readings of a commercial pulse-meter, therefore proving the versatility and the viability of the technique for the measurement of other cardiovascular signals.