Analog optical processing for the construction of fractal objects.

摘要

An analog optical processor for performing affine transformations and constructing fractal objects. An optical processor for optically performing an iterated affine transformation includes a rotating prism (14), an imaging lens (16) and a translatable mirror (18), together with a pulsed laser (10) as an input light source and an image detector array (28) to record the final transformed image. The amount of rotation is determined by the setting of the rotating prism (14). The imaging lens (16) provides the required magnification or demagnification. The translating mirror (18) is shifted to provide the necessary translation. The pulsed image passes through the optical loop many times to perform the transformation. An optical Iterated Function System is implemented by connecting a plurality of the optical loops in parallel, together with shutters or beamsplitters for guiding the pulsed image to different loops according to the probabilities assigned by the Iterated Function System.