A nonlinear optical, interferometric method for improving the resolution of a lithographic system by an arbitrarily large factor with high visibility is described. The technique is implemented experimentally for both twofold and three-fold enhancement of the resolution with respect to the traditional Rayleigh limit. In these experiments, an N-photon-absorption recording medium is simulated by N...

We have demonstrated a personal identification system that is based on near-infrared finger vein patterns. Finger vein patterns of 678 volunteers are acquired by transmitting near-infrared light through a finger and capturing the image with a CCD camera. These vein patterns are enhanced by a background-reduction filter. The similarity between two patterns is then quantified by use of the normal...

We present a method for compensating laser attenuation in optically dense sprays, in particular for use in combustion engine research. Images of the fuel sprays are produced by planar laser imaging, where Mie scattered light from a cross section of the spray is imaged onto a CCD camera. The compensation scheme is based on the Beer-Lambert law, which is used here to sum up the loss of light alon...

We describe an optical microscope system whose focal setting can be changed quickly without moving the objective lens or specimen. Using this system, diffraction limited images can be acquired from a wide range of focal settings without introducing optical aberrations that degrade image quality. We combine this system with a real time Nipkow disc based confocal microscope so as to permit the ac...

We present an experimental setup capable of performing a single-shot interferometric correlation of femtosecond pulses using two-photon conductivity in a standard silicon CCD camera. The method is demonstrated with 100-fs pulses at 1.4 microm.

A simple method for imaging ultrasonic fields in clear media is introduced. A modulated laser source is used to project the ultrasonic field onto a CCD camera. By use of the source-synchronized lock-in detection scheme, 2D images of the amplitude and phase distributions can be determined simultaneously. This technique is experimentally demonstrated with a 1-MHz and a 3.5-MHz ultrasonic transduc...

Synthetic aperture enlargement is obtained, in lensless digital holography, by introducing a diffraction grating between the object and the CCD camera with the aim of getting super-resolution. We demonstrate here that the spatial frequencies are naturally self-assembled in the reconstructed image plane when the NA is increased synthetically at its maximum extent of three times. By this approach...