Fighting against diffraction: apodization and near field diffraction structures

Wang, Haifeng; Sheppard, Colin J. R.; Ravi, Koustuban; Ho, Seng Tiong; Vienne, Guillaume

doi:10.1002/lpor.201100009

Cited by 53 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 384 publications

(402 reference statements)

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“…Improving resolution by modifying the pupil of the optical system (apodization) following the path broken by Toraldo di Francia has been traditionally referred to as 'super-resolution' [34,35]. Recently, efforts in this direction have been intensified [14,36,37,38], taking advantage of the progress achieved in nanofabrication.…”

Section: Super-resolution/superoscillationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Upholding the diffraction limit in the focusing of light and sound

Maznev

Wright

2017

Wave Motion

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The concept of the diffraction limit put forth by Ernst Abbe and others has been an important guiding principle limiting our ability to tightly focus classical waves, such as light and sound, in the far field. In the past decade, numerous reports have described focusing or imaging with light and sound 'below the diffraction limit'. We argue that the diffraction limit defined in a reasonable way, for example in terms of the upper bound on the wave numbers corresponding to the spatial Fourier components of the intensity profile, or in terms of the spot size into which at least 50% of the incident power can be focused, still stands unbroken to this day. We review experimental observations of 'subwavelength' or 'sub-diffraction-limit' focusing, which can be principally broken down into three broad categories: (i) 'super-resolution', i.e. the technique based on the modification of the pupil of the optical system to reduce the width of the central maximum in the intensity distribution at the expense of increasing side bands; (ii) solid immersion lenses, making use of metamaterials with a high effective index; (iii) concentration of intensity by a subwavelength structure such as an antenna. Even though a lot of interesting work has been done along these lines, none of the hitherto performed experiments violated the sensibly defined diffraction limit.

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Section: Super-resolution/superoscillationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Upholding the diffraction limit in the focusing of light and sound

Maznev

Wright

2017

Wave Motion

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“…Another method which has been proposed to extend the depth of focus is by dividing the lens pupil in rings and modulate the phase and amplitude of each ring [3]. These and other methods are discussed in more detail in [4][5][6][7][8][9][10].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Demonstration of an optimised focal field with long focal depth and high transmission obtained with the Extended Nijboer-Zernike theory

Konijnenberg¹,

Wei²,

Kumar³

et al. 2014

Opt. Express

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Abstract:In several optical systems, a specific Point Spread Function (PSF) needs to be generated. This can be achieved by shaping the complex field at the pupil. The Extended Nijboer-Zernike (ENZ) theory relates complex Zernike modes on the pupil directly to functions in the focal region. In this paper, we introduce a method to engineer a PSF using the ENZ theory. In particular, we present an optimization algorithm to design an extended depth of focus with high lateral resolution, while keeping the transmission of light high (over 60%). We also have demonstrated three outcomes of the algorithm using a Spatial Light Modulator (SLM). 145-148 (1965). 6. G. Toraldo di Francia, "Super-gain antennas and optical resolving power," Nuovo Cimento 9, 426-438 (1952). 7. H. Wang and F. Gan, "High focal depth with a pure-phase apodizer," Appl. Opt. 40, 5658-5662 (2001). 8. C. J. R. Sheppard, "Synthesis of filters for specified axial properties," J. Mod. Opt. 43, 525-536 (1996)

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“…One inspired idea was to reshape the PSF of the focal spot to decrease the FWHM: the apodization method. 13 Proposed in 1952 by Di Francia,14 this method had the advantage of sharpening the central maximum of the focal spot at the expense of larger side lobes. This defect made it unsuitable for widefield optical microscopes, creating artifacts and blurring the image.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

From microscopy to nanoscopy via visible light

Hao

Kuang

et al. 2013

Light Sci Appl

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The resolution of conventional optical equipment is always restricted by the diffraction limit, and improving on this was previously considered improbable. Optical super-resolution imaging, which has recently experienced rapid growth and attracted increasing global interest, will result in applications in many domains, benefiting fields such as biology, medicine and material research. This review discusses the contributions of different researchers who identified the diffractive barrier and attempted to realize optical super-resolution. This is followed by a personal viewpoint of the development of optical nanoscopy in recent decades and the road towards the next generation of optical nanoscopy.

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Fighting against diffraction: apodization and near field diffraction structures

Cited by 53 publications

References 384 publications

Upholding the diffraction limit in the focusing of light and sound

Upholding the diffraction limit in the focusing of light and sound

Demonstration of an optimised focal field with long focal depth and high transmission obtained with the Extended Nijboer-Zernike theory

From microscopy to nanoscopy via visible light

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