Super resolution optical systems for objects with finite sizes

By super resolution we mean: resolution beyond the Rayleigh limit. Basicall y, the proposed system works without any moving elements, with no time or w avelength restriction conditions. It is suitable for two dimensional imagin g. The trade off for higher resolution is a smaller field of view. For the most general and convenient implementation, three static gratings are requi red, instead of two as in previous attempts. The investigation of the super resolving optical setup is presented both for the coherent and the incoher ent cases. (C) 1999 Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.