Abstract

Nonlinear optical techniques have allowed fast practical methods of processing images. The transmitting of an image in a single pass through an intervening aberrator can be realized through the nonlinear technique of four-wave mixing. To remove optical aberrations from an intervening distortion medium via four-wave mixing, it is necessary that a reference beam have a common phase distortion as the image bearing beam by sampling the same aberration. We have used the two orthogonal polarizations of a laser to provide the reference and image bearing beams. The common phase distortions present on the two beams were removed through phase subtraction via four-wave mixing. This image distortion compensation was demonstrated with a single pass through an aberrator. Interferometric measurements of various aberrations were taken. Tilt errors of up to ten waves were corrected to better than λ/2. Aberrations severe enough to wash out images completely were accurately corrected.

© 1988 Optical Society of America