English

Time-Reversed Diffraction

Optics 2007-05-23 v1

Abstract

We show that a time-reversed formulation of Huygens-Kirchhoff diffraction can be used to deduce the transverse and longitudinal fields of a Gaussian laser beam, starting from a simple assumption of a Gaussian beam profile in the far field. An attempt to apply this technique to the far fields of a Hertzian dipole shows how the laws of diffraction do not permit a wave to be focused to a volume smaller than a cubic wavelength in a charge-free region.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.physics/0003058,
  title  = {Time-Reversed Diffraction},
  author = {Max S. Zolotorev and Kirk T. McDonald},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:physics/0003058},
  year   = {2007}
}