Ray-trace aberrations of curved graded-index media

Abstract

Numerical studies of ray-trace aberrations of a curved graded-index medium as a function of launching conditions and refractive-index profile are reported. The variation of meridional and skew ray aberrations with the launching angle for specific point objects shows that the axis of symmetry of the medium shifts on curving. Further, the aberrations of rays emanating from a point object increase or decrease with curvature, depending on the position of the object point with respect to the new axis of symmetry.