The Influence of Optical Alignment Error on Compression Coding Superresolution Imaging

Superresolution (SR) imaging technology based on compression coding has always been considered as the key to break through the geometric resolution of the detector. In addition to factors such as the reconstruction algorithm and mounting platform vibrations, the impact of inherent errors in the optical system itself on the reconstruction results of SR imaging is also obvious. To address this issue, a study on the design of the SR optical system and the influence of optical alignment errors on SR imaging was conducted. The design of the SR optical system based on digital micro-mirror device (DMD) for long-wave infrared wavelength was completed, and an athermal analysis of the system was carried out. The design results showed that the SR optical system has good imaging quality in the operating temperature range. The imaging model of the DMD SR imaging optical system is established according to the designed SR optical system. We investigated the influence of various alignment errors, including decenter, tilt, lens interval error and defocus, on the imaging properties of the SR optical system. Various random combinations of alignment errors were introduced into the optical system, respectively, and the SR reconstructed image quality of the imaging system was analyzed using the inverse sensitivity method to obtain the tolerance limits when the system was assembled. Finally, the effectiveness of the method to obtain the alignment tolerance limit of the compression coding SR imaging optical system was verified through a desktop demonstration experiment.