A Robust COTS Objective for Diffraction-Limited, High-NA, Long Front Working Distance Imaging
Abstract
We present a robust objective lens optimized for applications requiring both high numerical aperture (NA) and long front working distance imaging comprised of all commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) singlet lenses. Unlike traditional designs that require separate collimation and refocusing stages, our approach directly converges imaged light to the back focal plane using a single lens group. Our configuration corrects spherical aberrations and efficiently collects light to achieve diffraction-limited performance across a wide range of wavelengths while simplifying alignment and assembly. Using this approach, we design and construct an example objective lens that features a long front working distance of 61 mm and a clipped NA of 0.30 (limited by an aperture in our experimental setup). We experimentally verify that it achieves monochromatic diffraction-limited resolution at wavelengths from 375 nm to 866 nm without requiring replacement of the lenses or changing the inter-lens spacings, and its performance remains robust across a 46 mm range variation in total length (by adjusting mainly the back working distances). Additionally, we develop a quantitative method to measure the field of view (FOV) using an experimentally-calibrated pinhole target. Under 397 nm illumination (i.e. from Ca ion fluorescence), the objective achieves a resolution of 0.87 m with a 540 m FOV. This robust, all-COTS, and versatile design is well-suited for a broad range of experiments, supporting high-precision measurements and exploring quantum phenomena.
Cite
@article{arxiv.2507.15786,
title = {A Robust COTS Objective for Diffraction-Limited, High-NA, Long Front Working Distance Imaging},
author = {Jiafeng Cui and Gilles Buchs and Christopher M. Seck},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2507.15786},
year = {2025}
}