Imaging through an optical waveguide with wavelength diversity

Abstract

We propose to image through an optical waveguide using wavelength diversity. We demonstrate the technique by imaging through a parallel plate waveguide. Wavelength diversity is an alternative to the spatial shift diversity first reported to image through the plate waveguide. Severe optical aberrations are caused by the dispersion between the waveguide modes. The resulting point spread function (PSF) is highly nonisoplanatic, causing images that are transmitted to be severely distorted. Wavelength diversity is used to compensate for the aberrations and correct the image transmission. Two images are collected, each at different wavelengths, and the phase diversity algorithms applied. Computer imaging simulations are shown for imaging through a parallel plate waveguide, with allowance made for aperture and length measurement error due to mechanical drift. The image sensor is assumed to have an additive Gaussian noise model with noise covariance R N and pixel quantization of eight bits.