Panoramic monocentric imaging using fiber-coupled focal planes.

Area of Science:

• Optics and Photonics
• Image Sensor Technology
• Computational Imaging

Background:

• Monocentric lenses offer wide field-of-view (FOV) imaging capabilities.
• Traditional wide-angle lenses often suffer from aberrations and lower light-gathering efficiency.
• Fiber-bundle image transfer is a method for coupling unconventional image surfaces to standard sensors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and characterize a compact, high-resolution panoramic imager.
• To evaluate the performance of a monocentric lens coupled with CMOS sensors via fiber bundles.
• To compare the developed system against conventional wide-angle photographic lenses.

Main Methods:

• Design and fabrication of a 2-glass monocentric lens with an F/1.0 aperture.
• Integration of 5-megapixel, 1.75µm pitch back-side illuminated CMOS sensors with 2.5µm pitch fiber bundles.
• Assembly of the monocentric lens, sensors, and optomechanics into a panoramic imaging system.

Main Results:

• The fiber-coupled monocentric lens demonstrated superior resolution and light collection compared to a conventional F/4 photographic lens.
• A compact 30-megapixel panoramic imager with a 126° FOV was successfully assembled.
• The system achieved high-resolution imaging over a wide field of view.

Conclusions:

• Monocentric lens systems coupled with fiber optics and modern CMOS sensors represent a viable approach for compact, high-performance panoramic imaging.
• This technology offers a significant advancement over conventional wide-angle imaging solutions.
• The developed imager provides a compact and efficient solution for capturing wide field-of-view scenes.