13 February 2021 Clarifications on the 0.5λ/NA resolution limit
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Abstract

Abbe’s reasoning behind his expression of the resolution limit can be seen from his 1876 letter to J. W. Stephenson. Helmholtz came up with the same resolution limit expression almost at the same time as Abbe in another way. The numerical aperture (NA ≡ n sin θ) part of the expression is a consequence of the sine condition, which must be fulfilled for aplanatic imaging.

© 2021 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE)
Anthony Yen "Clarifications on the 0.5λ/NA resolution limit," Journal of Micro/Nanopatterning, Materials, and Metrology 20(1), 010501 (13 February 2021). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.JMM.20.1.010501
Received: 8 December 2020; Accepted: 21 January 2021; Published: 13 February 2021
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CITATIONS
Cited by 2 scholarly publications.
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KEYWORDS
Diffraction

Image resolution

Diffraction gratings

Geometrical optics

Spherical lenses

Optical spheres

Wavefronts

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