Aberrations of the point spread function of a multimode fiber

TL;DR

This paper studies the distortions in the focal spot of a multimode fiber, develops a wavefront shaping model to understand aberrations, and proposes methods for aberration-free imaging with potential applications in microendoscopy.

Contribution

It introduces a theoretical wavefront shaping model for multimode fibers and demonstrates how to achieve aberration-free imaging with a large field of view.

Findings

Aberrations depend on fiber parameters and wavefront shaping segments.

Optimal segment number reduces focal distortions.

Method enables high-quality imaging in microendoscopy.

Abstract

We investigate the point spread function of a multimode fiber. The distortion of the focal spot created on the fiber output facet is studied for a variety of the parameters. We develop a theoretical model of wavefront shaping through a multimode fiber and use it to confirm our experimental results and analyze the nature of the focal distortions. We show that aberration-free imaging with a large field of view can be achieved by using an appropriate number of segments on the spatial light modulator during the wavefront-shaping procedure. The results describe aberration limits for imaging with multimode fibers as in, e.g., microendoscopy.