%0 Journal Article %T A New Approach to Telescope Fourier Optics %A Roy Danchick %J Open Access Library Journal %V 6 %N 11 %P 1-14 %@ 2333-9721 %D 2019 %I Open Access Library %R 10.4236/oalib.1105856 %X
In this paper we take a new approach to solving the Ray-leigh-Sommerfeld-Smythe equation for a telescope¡¯s optical impulse re-sponse to a monochromatic point source spherical wave radiating outward from the origin in the object plane. Two cases are covered: 1) the point source at the origin in the telescope¡¯s near-field object plane; 2) the point source at the origin in the far-field object plane as is the case with satellite infrared sensors when the distance between the telescope and the point source is very much greater than the telescope¡¯s circular aperture diameter. With only the assumption of a thin circular aperture we 1) derive a general solution that erases the distinction among the three classically defined zones of the optical axis: Near, Fresnel, and Fraunhofer; 2) reduce the computational complexity down from two-dimensional to one-dimensional Fourier transform integrals and; 3) identify Filon quadrature as the numerical method of choice for accurately and efficiently approximating the values of these integrals and; 4) provide a computational example.
%K Fourier Optics %K Fourier Transforms %K Convolution %K Bessel Functions %K Filon Quadrature %U http://www.oalib.com/paper/5423213