Patent ID: 7180604
Filing Date: 2007-02-20
Classification: G01B,G01J,G01N,G02B,G03F

Abstract:
1. An imaging system for imaging an object point to an image point, the system comprising: a beam splitter positioned to receive light rays from the object point and separate each of a plurality of rays into a transmitted portion and a reflected portion, the transmitted portions defining a first set of rays and the reflected portions defining a second set of rays; and an optical structure forming a concave reflecting surface positioned to receive one of the first and second sets of rays from the beam splitter and focus that set of rays towards the image point via the beam splitter, wherein said one of the sets of rays travels along a path segment having a first end and a second end, the first end of the path segment contacting the beam splitter and the second end of the path segment contacting the concave reflecting surface and wherein at least most of the path segment passes through a gas or vacuum.