Direct modal wavefront estimation from speckle images
Abstract
This article presents a method for direct estimation of modal wavefront coefficients from speckle images obtained using a thin diffuser. Zernike coefficients are recovered from intensity differences between reference and distorted speckle patterns using a least-squares formulation derived from a first-order Taylor expansion. Simulations demonstrate accurate reconstruction across a range of aberrations and detector noise levels. Compared to the Demon algorithm, the proposed method shows improved performance for small aberrations and under noisy conditions, while Demon performs better at large amplitudes. Experimental validation demonstrates good agreement with Shack-Hartmann measurements, with residual RMS errors consistent with experimental uncertainty.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Adaptive optics and wavefront sensing
Random lasers and scattering media
Optical measurement and interference techniques
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Optics Letters
- Publisher
- Optica Publishing Group
- Volume
- 51
- Issue
- 12
- Pages
- 3365–3365
- Publication date
- 18 May 2026
- Language
- EN