Patent ID: 8351036
Filing Date: 2013-01-08
Classification: G01J,G02B

Abstract:
1. A system for naturally adjusting the effective cross-sectional area of a focusing means as a function of wavelength for a multiplicity thereof, to improve the performance of the focusing means comprising, in either order: a) a focusing means for focusing an electromagnetic beam, selected from the group consisting of: b) a filtering means for naturally adjusting the effective cross-sectional area of a transmitted beam of electromagnetic radiation, as a function of wavelength; said means for focusing an electromagnetic beam not requiring any additional, beam shaping, elements; said focusing means and said filtering means being functionally associated; wherein the design criteria of said filtering means is that the effective cross-sectional area of the electromagnetic beam passed by said filtering means to said focusing means is naturally adjusted with respect to wavelength for each of a multiplicity thereof, such that the performance of the focusing means is rendered approximately optimum in view of an inherent tradeoff between diffraction and aberration effects as a function of electromagnetic beam cross-sectional area; wherein the terminology “naturally adjusted” means that a filter material optically responds to different wavelengths differently, so that an effective diameter, and therefore the cross-sectional area of a beam of electromagnetic radiation interacting with an associated focusing means, is different for different wavelengths.