Abstract

Inverse synthesis techniques are important for development of diffractive optical elements. For non-periodic media, approximations can be made which allow estimates of the scattering permittivity distribution to be found. Over the last 15 years [1,2,3] we have moved from trying to interpret the most restrictive yet computationally simple of these approximations, the linearizing first Born and Rytov approximations, to the development of techniques which can be applied to both strongly scattering media as well as nonlinear (e.g. χ³) structures. We have also applied these methods to real experimental data as well as simulated cases, as such work has wide ranging uses in fields as diverse as medical and geophysical imaging, as well as the design of optical components. Emerging from these studies is a clearer understanding as to how the differential cepstral method (see [4]) and distorted wave methods can be integrated in order to synthesize structures which are both strongly scattering and which have prescribed optically controllable scattering patterns.

© 1996 Optical Society of America