Focusing and sensing apparatus, methods, and systems

• US 8,705,183 B2
• Filed: 07/30/2008
• Issued: 04/22/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Invention Science Fund I, L.L.C. (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: The Invention Science Fund I, L.L.C. (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Bowers, Jeffrey A., Hyde, Roderick A., Jung, Edward K. Y., Pendry, John Brian, Schurig, David, Smith, David R., Tegreene, Clarence T., Weaver, Thomas A., Whitmer, Charles, Wood, Lowell L. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sugarman, Scott J
• Application Number:
  US12/221,198
• Publication Number:
  US 20090294668A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,092 Days
• Field of Search: 359/741, 359/724, 359/721, 359/672, 359/676, 343/700.R
• US Class Current: 359/721
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/40 Optical focusing aids

Abstract

Apparatus, methods, and systems provide focusing, focus-adjusting, and sensing. In some approaches the focus-adjusting includes providing an extended depth of focus greater than a nominal depth of focus. In some approaches the focus-adjusting includes focus-adjusting with a transformation medium, where the transformation medium may include an artificially-structured material such as a metamaterial.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

at an input surface region of a focus-adjusting structure, substantially-nonreflectively receiving an electromagnetic wave that converges towards a nominal focusing region, the nominal focusing region having a nominal axial dimension; and

spatially dilating the electromagnetic wave along a direction corresponding to the nominal axial dimension, thereby providing an actual focusing region having an actual axial dimension greater than the nominal axial dimension;

wherein the focus-adjusting structure is an artificially-structured material with electromagnetic properties selected from permittivity and permeability, the electromagnetic properties including;

axial electromagnetic parameters; and

transverse electromagnetic parameters that inversely correspond to the axial electromagnetic parameters.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the electromagnetic wave is a polarized electromagnetic wave.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the polarized electromagnetic wave is a TE-polarized electromagnetic wave.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the polarized electromagnetic wave is a TM-polarized electromagnetic wave.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the electromagnetic wave is an unpolarized electromagnetic wave.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the electromagnetic wave is at a first frequency.

7. The method of claim 6, where the first frequency is an optical frequency.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the optical frequency corresponds to a visible wavelength.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the optical frequency corresponds to an infrared wavelength.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein the first frequency is a radio frequency.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the radio frequency is a microwave frequency.

12. The method of claim 6, wherein the first frequency is a millimeter-wave frequency.

13. The method of claim 6, wherein the first frequency is a submillimeter-wave frequency.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the electromagnetic wave is a superposition that includes a first electromagnetic wave at a first frequency and a second electromagnetic wave at a second frequency, and the spatially dilating includes:

spatially dilating the first electromagnetic wave, thereby providing a first actual focusing subregion within the actual focusing region, the first actual focusing subregion having a first actual axial subdimension greater than the nominal axial dimension; and

spatially dilating the second electromagnetic wave, thereby providing a second actual focusing subregion within the actual focusing region, the second actual focusing subregion having a second actual axial subdimension greater than the nominal axial dimension.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the second actual axial subdimension is different than the first actual axial subdimension.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the second actual axial subdimension is substantially equal to the first actual axial subdimension.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

deflecting the electromagnetic wave with a focusing structure, whereby the electromagnetic wave converges towards the nominal focusing region.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the electromagnetic wave is a superposition that includes a first electromagnetic wave at a first frequency and a second electromagnetic wave at a second frequency;

and the deflecting includes;

deflecting the first electromagnetic wave, whereby the first electromagnetic wave converges toward a first nominal focusing subregion within the nominal focusing region, the first nominal focusing subregion having a first nominal axial subdimension; and

deflecting the second electromagnetic wave, whereby the second electromagnetic wave converges toward a second nominal focusing subregion within the nominal focusing region, the second nominal focusing subregion having a second nominal axial subdimension.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the spatially dilating includes:

spatially dilating the first electromagnetic wave, thereby providing a first actual focusing subregion within the actual focusing region, the first actual focusing subregion having a first actual axial subdimension greater than the first nominal axial subdimension; and

spatially dilating the second electromagnetic wave, thereby providing a second actual focusing subregion within the actual focusing region, the second actual focusing subregion having a second actual axial dimension greater than the second nominal axial subdimension.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the second nominal axial subdimension is different than the first nominal axial subdimension.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the second actual axial subdimension is substantially equal to the first actual axial subdimension.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein the second nominal axial subdimension is substantially equal to the first nominal axial subdimension.

23. The method of claim 17, wherein the deflecting includes refracting.

24. The method of claim 17, wherein the deflecting includes reflecting.

25. The method of claim 17, wherein the deflecting includes diffracting.

26. The method of claim 17, wherein the deflecting includes waveguiding.

27. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sensing the electromagnetic wave at one or more locations within the actual focusing region.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the sensing includes sensing with at least one antenna.

29. The method of claim 27, wherein the sensing includes sensing with at least one photodetector.

30. The method of claim 27, wherein the one or more locations is a plurality of locations.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the plurality of locations is an axially distributed plurality of locations.

32. The method of claim 30, wherein the sensing includes sensing with a plurality of antennas.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the plurality of antennas composes an antenna phased array.

34. The method of claim 1, wherein the nominal focusing region is a first substantially planar slab and the nominal axial dimension is a thickness of the first substantially planar slab.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein the actual focusing region is a second substantially planar slab substantially parallel to the first substantially planar slab, and the actual axial dimension is a thickness of the second substantially planar slab.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein the second substantially planar slab encloses the first substantially planar slab.

37. The method of claim 1, wherein the nominal focusing region is at least a portion of a first curved slab and the nominal axial dimension is a thickness of the first curved slab.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein the actual focusing region is at least a portion of a second curved slab, the first and second curved slabs having a substantially similar curvature, and the actual axial dimension is a thickness of the second curved slab.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein the second curved slab encloses the first curved slab.

40. The method of claim 37, wherein the first curved slab is a substantially cylindrical shell and the nominal axial dimension is a radial dimension of the substantially cylindrical shell.

41. The method of claim 37, wherein the first curved slab is a substantially spherical shell and the nominal axial dimension is a radial dimension of the substantially spherical shell.

42. The method of claim 37, wherein the first curved slab is a substantially ellipsoidal shell.

43. The method of claim 1, wherein the substantially-nonreflectively receiving is a substantially-nonreflectively refracting.

44. The method of claim 43, wherein the substantially-nonreflectively refracting is substantially-nonreflectively refracting by wave-impedance matching.

45. The method of claim 1, wherein the spatially dilating is spatially dilating with a uniform scale factor.

46. The method of claim 1, wherein the spatially dilating is spatially dilating with a non-uniform scale factor.

47. The method of claim 1, wherein the spatially dilating is spatially dilating by propagating the electromagnetic wave in the artificially-structured material.

48. The method of claim 47, wherein the spatially dilating is spatially dilating with a uniform scale factor.

49. The method of claim 47, wherein the spatially dilating is spatially dilating with a non-uniform scale factor.

50. The method of claim 49, wherein the non-uniform scale factor corresponds to a non-uniform refractive index of the artificially-structured material.

51. The method of claim 47, wherein the artificially-structured material is a transformation medium.

52. The method of claim 1, wherein the artificially-structured material includes a metamaterial.