Huarong Gu

Phase extraction from interferograms with unknown tilt phase shifts based on a regularized optical flow method

A novel method is presented to extract phase distribution from phase-shifted interferograms with unknown tilt phase shifts. The proposed method can estimate the tilt phase shift between two temporal phase-shifted interferograms with high accuracy, by extending the regularized optical flow method with the spatial image processing and frequency estimation technology. With all the estimated tilt phase shifts, the phase component encoded in the interferograms can be extracted by the least-squares method. Both simulation and experimental results have fully proved the feasibility of the proposed method. Particularly, a flat-based diffractive optical element with quasi-continuous surface is tested by the proposed method with introduction of considerably large tilt phase shift amounts (i.e., the highest estimated tilt phase shift amount between two consecutive frame reaches 6.18λ). The phase extraction result is in good agreement with that of Zygos MetroPro software under steady-state testing conditions, and the residual difference between them is discussed. In comparison with the previous methods, the proposed method not only has relatively little restrictions on the amounts or orientations of the tilt phase shifts, but also works well with interferograms including open and closed fringes in any combination.

Orthogonal-reference-pattern-modulated shift multiplexing for collinear holographic data storage

A novel hybrid shift multiplexing method for collinear holographic data storage (CHDS) by using orthogonal reference patterns (RPs) is proposed, analyzed, and demonstrated. For this method, holograms are multiplexed by not only shifting the media but also using different RPs. Compared with the traditional method, the shift pitch for the hybrid method is substantially reduced because of the selectivity introduced by different RPs. The interpage cross talk due to Bragg mismatch and degeneracy for multiplexing holograms in the same volume by using orthogonal RPs is also attenuated by utilizing the shift selectivity of the hologram. A 1.5 μm shift pitch is experimentally achieved by using three amplitude RPs in a system that would be 4.5 μm with only one RP. This new method offers an alternative to significantly increase the data density and transfer rate of the CHDS system given that the media has ideal properties.

Precise design of two-dimensional diffractive optical elements for beam shaping.

Diffractive optical elements (DOEs) for beam shaping are widely used in many fields, and there are many kinds of optimization algorithms to design the DOEs for beam shaping. However, only the intensity distribution of the selected sampling points is controlled by these optimization algorithms. The intensity distribution of other points on the output plane is always far away from the ideal distribution. The reason is that the sampling interval on the output plane is not small enough. In this paper, a new modified GS algorithm is presented with a small enough sampling interval on the output plane. A two-dimensional DOE for beam shaping is designed, and the simulation results and the experimental results demonstrate the good performance of this algorithm.

Holographic projection with higher image quality.

The spatial resolution limited by the size of the spatial light modulator (SLM) in the holographic projection can hardly be increased, and speckle noise always appears to induce the degradation of image quality. In this paper, the holographic projection with higher image quality is presented. The spatial resolution of the reconstructed image is 2 times of that of the existing holographic projection, and speckles are suppressed well at the same time. Finally, the effectiveness of the holographic projection is verified in experiments.

Image magnification in lensless holographic projection using double-sampling Fresnel diffraction

Since the diffraction angle is limited by the spatial resolution of the spatial light modulator (SLM), the size of the optical image of the lensless holographic projection with a SLM is very small. Using a divergent spherical beam to illuminate a SLM is an effective method to physically increase the projection angle; nevertheless, the sampling ranges of the existing Fresnel diffraction algorithms with fast Fourier transform keep unchanged. In this paper, a double-sampling Fresnel diffraction algorithm to enlarge the sampling range is proposed when using a divergent spherical beam to illuminate a SLM, and the magnification of the optical image is realized in lensless holographic projection. The hologram can be easily optimized by the Gerschberg-Saxton algorithm. Simulation and experimental results with enlarged optical image are presented successfully.

Diffractive optical element with same diffraction pattern for multicolor light-emitting diodes.

The wavelength-division multiplexing technique can be utilized in visible light communication to increase the channel capacity when a multicolor mixed white LED is used as light source. In such an application, the illumination area of LEDs should be invariant to the incident wavelength, so as to decrease interference within the adjacent regions. Diffractive optical elements (DOEs) can be used in the optical transmitter system to shape the diffraction patterns into polygons. However, traditional DOEs illuminated by a multicolor mixed white LED would result into diffraction patterns with unequal sizes. In this paper, a hybrid algorithm which combines particle swarm optimization with a genetic algorithm is proposed for multicolor oriented DOEs design. A DOE is designed and fabricated for blue and red LEDs, and experimental results show that diffraction patterns with rather good uniformity as well as quasi-equal size for red and blue LEDs are obtained.

Reed--Solomon Volumetric Coding with Matched Interleaving for Holographic Data Storage

For various error patterns, including random errors, burst errors, and inhomogeneously distributed errors, in the holographic data storage (HDS) channel, a Reed–Solomon volumetric coding with matched interleaving (RSVC-MI) scheme is proposed in this paper. The RSVC-MI scheme combines the advantages of the RSVC scheme and the matched interleaving scheme, makes full use of the priori knowledge of the error patterns in the HDS channel, distributes errors more uniformly, and decodes data iteratively in three dimensions. It is able to eliminate the influences of non-uniform distribution of errors within a page and across pages, overcome the effects of burst errors, correct random errors, and effectively reduce the symbol error rate (SER) of the HDS channel.

Improving signal-to-noise ratio by use of a cross-shaped aperture in the holographic data storage system

A cross-shaped aperture is proposed to improve signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in the holographic data storage system (HDSS). Both simulated and experimental results show that higher SNR can be achieved by the cross-shaped aperture than traditional square or circular apertures with the same area. A maximum gain of 20% in SNR is obtained for the optimized cross-shaped aperture. The sensitivities to pixel misalignment and magnification error are also numerically compared.

Design, fabrication, and testing of zone-plate interconnects for a compact optoelectronic integrated neural coprocessor

We have designed, fabricated, and tested a set of scalable compact optical elements for use in the compact optoelectronic integrated neural (COIN) coprocessor. The COIN coprocessor is an implementation of a feed-forward neural network that uses optical interconnects to transmit information from one layer of neurons to the next. Optical interconnection elements based on Fresnel-zone-plate concepts have been fabricated using standard lithographic processes, thereby allowing large arrays to be fabricated with a single exposure. This paper discusses the design trade-offs that must be considered for effective use of such elements in a COIN coprocessor, and the fabrication and testing of a set of such optical interconnection elements. It was found that the behavior of the fabricated zone plates correlated well with the design simulation, and that this type of optical element is indeed suitable for use in the COIN coprocessor.

Channel analysis of the volume holographic correlator for scene matching

A channel model of the volume holographic correlator (VHC) is proposed and demonstrated to improve the accuracy in the scene matching application with the multi-sample parallel estimation (MPE) algorithm. A quantity related to the space-bandwidth product is used to describe the recognition ability in the scene matching system by MPE. A curve is given to optimize the number of samples with the required recognition accuracy. The theoretical simulation and the experimental results show the validity of the channel model. The proposed model provides essential theoretical predictions and implementation guidelines for using the multi-sample parallel estimation method to achieve the highest accuracy.