Multiple imagery with birefringent lenses

Abstract

The anomalies that crystalline plates introduce in the quality of an image have been known for many years. With its ability to control the polarization of its output, the laser makes reexamination of these anomalies practical. Using a birefringent lens, we have produced spatially separated multiple images. Dual focal points were achieved through polarization control by utilizing the ordinary and extraordinary beams in a thin crystalline lens. Further considerations indicate the possibility of achieving F = 2(n) focal points through electrooptic control, where n is the number of thin, birefringent lenses.