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1 March 1992 Role of Fourier theory in optics education
Jack D. Gaskill
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Proceedings Volume 1603, Education in Optics; (1992) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.57831
Event: Education in Optics, 1991, Leningrad, Russian Federation
Abstract
Fourier theory has found application in many areas of science and engineering, but perhaps nowhere has it found a more natural home than in the field of optics. Why? Because optics, by its very nature, allows the utility of this incredible mathematical tool to be viewed directly; in other disciplines, its consequences can usually only be imagined or, at best, observed indirectly. Such a unique characteristic serves as a powerful educational aid for those in the process of learning about the field. The thesis that a polychromatic optical wavefield consists of a superposition of temporal-frequency components is easily demonstrated in the classroom, as is the decomposition of an arbitrary monochromatic wavefield into its plane-wave spectrum. Yet another demonstration helps explain the spatial-frequency performance of an optical imaging system. The now-popular Fourier techniques that provide a solid mathematical foundation for exploring the physics associated with these and other phenomena are discussed.
© (1992) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
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Jack D. Gaskill "Role of Fourier theory in optics education", Proc. SPIE 1603, Education in Optics, (1 March 1992); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.57831
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KEYWORDS
Fourier transforms
Diffraction
Far-field diffraction
Fourier theory
Image acquisition
Optics education
Imaging systems
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