Scaled transverse translation by planar optical elements for sub-pixel sampling and remote super-resolution imaging

Abstract

High resolution imaging represents a relentless pursuit within the field of optical system. Multi-frame super-resolution (SR) is an effective method for enhancing sampling density, while it heavily relies on sub-pixel scale displacement of a bulky camera. Based on the symmetric transformation of quadratic-phase metasurface, we propose scaled transverse translation (STT) utilizing planar optical elements (POEs) to facilitate sub-pixel sampling and remote super-resolution imaging. The STT module composed of a pair of planar optical elements with conjugated quadratic phase profile is fabricated and experimentally verified. By displacing POE within a millimeter-level range, we achieve sub-micron in imaging shift accuracy. Furthermore, the results of SR and SR enhanced Fourier ptychography imaging demonstrate significant compatibility and effectiveness of this module. The resolution improvement in FP imaging increases from 2× to 2.8× by sub-pixel sampling using this module. Moreover, defect reduction and contrast enhancement are obtained. With its advantages of light-weight, simple structure and ease of implementation, this method shows considerable potential for numerous imaging applications.