Computational Imaging through Scatter using Synthetic Waves

Imaging through scattering scenes or materials severely limits the visual acuity of optical imaging systems. This talk discusses how diversity in illumination wavelength can be utilized to circumvent the problem of phase randomization in scattered light fields. Our technique probes the scene at two closely spaced optical wavelengths and computationally assembles a complex "synthetic field" at a "synthetic wavelength," which is used for further processing. As the synthetic wavelength is the beat wavelength of the two used optical "carrier" wavelengths, it can be picked orders of magnitudes larger, and the computationally assembled synthetic field becomes immune to scatter. Amongst other applications, the introduced method allows for holographic measurements of hidden objects through scattering media or around corners, or for interferometric measurements of macroscopic objects with rough surfaces. During the talk, different flavors of the technique will be introduced, including a method to retrieve the complex synthetic field in single-shot.