Design of three-mirror telescopes via a differential equation method

Shao-Hua Chao; Neal C. Evans; David L. Shealy; R. Barry Johnson

doi:10.1117/12.256233

1 November 1996 Design of three-mirror telescopes via a differential equation method

Shao-Hua Chao, Neal C. Evans, David L. Shealy, R. Barry Johnson

Proceedings Volume 2863, Current Developments in Optical Design and Engineering VI; (1996) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.256233
Event: SPIE's 1996 International Symposium on Optical Science, Engineering, and Instrumentation, 1996, Denver, CO, United States

Abstract

A differential equation method is applied to the design of a three-mirror telescope. The resulting system is mostly free of spherical aberration, coma and astigmatism. From caustic theory and a generalization of the Coddington Equations, the Abbe sine condition and the constant optical path length condition, three coupled differential equations, one for each reflecting surface, are generated. A system which satisfies these conditions will have a high resolution over a wide field of view. Analysis of this application is presented as a comparison to a similar three-mirror telescope system produced by conventional optimization techniques.

Citation Download Citation

Shao-Hua Chao, Neal C. Evans, David L. Shealy, and R. Barry Johnson "Design of three-mirror telescopes via a differential equation method", Proc. SPIE 2863, Current Developments in Optical Design and Engineering VI, (1 November 1996); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.256233

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