Designing diffractive optical elements for shaping partially coherent beams by proximity correction.

Abstract

We propose a new method to design diffractive optical elements (DOE) for shaping partially coherent beams. The diffraction patterns of a DOE under a certain partially coherent beam can be modeled by the convolution of the coherent diffraction pattern and the inherent degree of coherent function. Two basic types of diffraction anomalies induced by partially coherent beams are discussed, including line-end shortening and corner rounding. A proximity correction (PC) method similar to the optical proximity correction (OPC) technique in lithography is used to compensate for these anomalies. The designed DOE exhibits good performance in partially coherent beam shaping and noise suppression.