Implementing a non-4f relay system for Hartmann–Shack wavefront sensing

Abstract

Hartmann–Shack wavefront sensors (HSWSs) are used in many disciplines to measure optical aberrations. Conventionally, the wavefront of interest is transferred onto the lenslet array of the HSWS with a telescopic 4f relay system. However, the 4f relay design restricts the choice of focal lengths and distances used for the relay system. In this paper, we describe a non-4f variant and demonstrate both theoretically and experimentally that its wavefront relaying properties equal that of a 4f system. We also present an alignment method for conjugating the wavefront with the lenslet array of the HSWS for both 4f and non-4f systems.