Imaging of optical sparse aperture systems and its evaluation experimentally

Abstract

Optical sparse aperture systems can be designed to obtain high resolution for imaging astronomical object. They are particular arrays synthesized by several small filled imaging systems. In this paper, a principle experiment is set up for optical sparse aperture system. Imaging of the extended complex object is achieved. Image restoration of the direct output by the sparse-aperture system is performed by measuring the point spread functions (PSF) and by using the Weiner filter. The correlation coefficient is proposed as a criterion to determine optimal parameter, and evaluate the performance of the algorithms. The results show that Tri-Arm array configuration among three kinds of configuration models can produce higher resolution and larger correlation coefficient value after restoration. Accordingly, based on the experimental data, the possibility is demonstrated that the optical sparse aperture systems can achieve almost the same resolution and image quality as an equivalent filled system.