Spinning disk for compressive imaging

We report the first, to the best of our knowledge, experimental implementation of a spinning-disk configuration for high-speed compressive image acquisition. A single rotating mask (i.e., the spinning disk) with random binary patterns was utilized to spatially modulate a collimated terahertz (THz) or IR beam. After propagating through the sample, the THz or IR beam was measured using a single detector, and THz and IR images were subsequently reconstructed using compressive sensing. We demonstrate that a 32-by-32 pixel image could be obtained from 160 to 240 measurements in both the IR and THz ranges. This spinning-disk configuration allows the use of an electric motor to rotate the spinning disk, thus enabling the experiment to be performed automatically and continuously. This, together with its compact design and computational efficiency, makes it promising for real-time imaging applications.