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(1)
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Figure3:ContrastExpressedasa
SquareWave[ViewLargerImage]
Components|Understanding|Importance|Characterization
Whenopticaldesignersattempttocomparetheperformanceofopticalsystems,acommonlyusedmeasureisthe
modulationtransferfunction(MTF).MTFisusedforcomponentsassimpleasasphericalsingletlenstothoseascomplex
asamultielementtelecentricimaginglensassembly.InordertounderstandthesignificanceofMTF,considersome
generalprinciplesandpracticalexamplesfordefiningMTFincludingitscomponents,importance,andcharacterization.
THECOMPONENTSOFMTF
Toproperlydefinethemodulationtransferfunction,itisnecessarytofirstdefinetwotermsrequiredtotrulycharacterize
imageperformance:resolutionandcontrast.
Resolution
Resolutionisanimagingsystem'sabilitytodistinguishobjectdetail.Itisoftenexpressedintermsoflinepairsper
millimeter(wherealinepairisasequenceofoneblacklineandonewhiteline).Thismeasureoflinepairspermillimeter
(lp/mm)isalsoknownasfrequency.Theinverseofthefrequencyyieldsthespacinginmillimetersbetweentworesolved
lines.Bartargetswithaseriesofequallyspaced,alternatingwhiteandblackbars(i.e.a1951USAFtargetoraRonchi
ruling)areidealfortestingsystemperformance.Foramoredetailedexplanationoftesttargets,viewChoosingthe
CorrectTestTarget.Forallimagingoptics,whenimagingsuchapattern,perfectlineedgesbecomeblurredtoadegree
(Figure1).Highresolutionimagesarethosewhichexhibitalargeamountofdetailasaresultofminimalblurring.
Conversely,lowresolutionimageslackfinedetail.
Figure1:PerfectLineEdgesBefore(Left)andAfter(Right)Passingthrougha
LowResolutionImagingLens[ViewLargerImage]
Apracticalwayofunderstandinglinepairsistothinkofthemaspixelsonacamerasensor,whereasinglelinepair
correspondstotwopixels(Figure2).Twocamerasensorpixelsareneededforeachlinepairofresolution:onepixelis
dedicatedtotheredlineandtheothertotheblankspacebetweenpixels.Usingtheaforementionedmetaphor,image
resolutionofthecameracannowbespecifiedasequaltotwiceitspixelsize.
Figure2:ImagingScenariosWhere(a)the
LinePairisNOTResolvedand(b)theLine
PairisResolved[ViewLargerImage]
Correspondingly,objectresolutioniscalculatedusingthecameraresolutionandtheprimarymagnification(PMAG)ofthe
imaginglens(Equations12).Itisimportanttonotethattheseequationsassumetheimaginglenscontributesno
resolutionloss.
Contrast/Modulation
Considernormalizingtheintensityofabartargetbyassigningamaximumvaluetothewhitebarsandzerovaluetothe
blackbars.Plottingthesevaluesresultsinasquarewave,fromwhichthenotionofcontrastcanbemoreeasilyseen
(Figure3).Mathematically,contrastiscalculatedwithEquation3:
WhenthissameprincipleisappliedtotheimagingexampleinFigure1,the
intensitypatternbeforeandafterimagingcanbeseen(Figure4).Contrastor
modulationcanthenbedefinedashowfaithfullytheminimumandmaximum
intensityvaluesaretransferredfromobjectplanetoimageplane.
Tounderstandtherelationbetweencontrastandimagequality,consideran
imaginglenswiththesameresolutionastheoneinFigure1andFigure4,but
usedtoimageanobjectwithagreaterlinepairfrequency.Figure5illustratesthat
asthespatialfrequencyofthelinesincreases,thecontrastoftheimage
decreases.Thiseffectisalwayspresentwhenworkingwithimaginglensesofthe
sameresolution.Fortheimagetoappeardefined,blackmustbetrulyblackand
whitetrulywhite,withaminimalamountofgrayscalebetween.
IntroductiontoModulationTransferFunction
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(5)
(6)
Figure6:MTFforan
AberrationFreeLenswitha
RectangularAperture
[ViewLargerImage]
Figure4:ContrastofaBarTargetandItsImage[ViewLargerImage]
Figure5:ContrastComparisonatObjectandImagePlanes[ViewLargerImage]
Inimagingapplications,theimaginglens,camerasensor,andilluminationplaykeyrolesindeterminingtheresulting
imagecontrast.Thelenscontrastistypicallydefinedintermsofthepercentageoftheobjectcontrastthatisreproduced.
Thesensor'sabilitytoreproducecontrastisusuallyspecifiedintermsofdecibels(dB)inanalogcamerasandbitsin
digitalcameras.
UNDERSTANDINGMTF
Nowthatthecomponentsofthemodulationtransferfunction(MTF),resolutionand
contrast/modulation,aredefined,considerMTFitself.TheMTFofalens,asthename
implies,isameasurementofitsabilitytotransfercontrastataparticularresolutionfrom
theobjecttotheimage.Inotherwords,MTFisawaytoincorporateresolutionandcontrast
intoasinglespecification.Aslinespacingdecreases(i.e.thefrequencyincreases)onthe
testtarget,itbecomesincreasinglydifficultforthelenstoefficientlytransferthisdecrease
incontrastasresult,MTFdecreases(Figure6).
Foranaberrationfreeimagewithacircularpupil,MTFisgivenbyEquation4,whereMTFis
afunctionofspatialresolution(),whichreferstothesmallestlinepairthesystemcan
resolve.Thecutofffrequency(c)isgivenbyEquation6.
Figure6plotstheMTFofanaberrationfreeimagewitharectangularpupil.Ascanbeexpected,theMTFdecreasesasthe
spatialresolutionincreases.Itisimportanttonotethatthesecasesareidealizedandthatnoactualsystemiscompletely
aberrationfree.
THEIMPORTANCEOFMTF
Intraditionalsystemintegration(andlesscrucialapplications),thesystem'sperformanceisroughlyestimatedusingthe
principleoftheweakestlink.Theprincipleoftheweakestlinkproposesthatasystem'sresolutionissolelylimitedbythe
componentwiththelowestresolution.Althoughthisapproachisveryusefulforquickestimations,itisactuallyflawed
becauseeverycomponentwithinthesystemcontributeserrortotheimage,yieldingpoorerimagequalitythanthe
weakestlinkalone.
Everycomponentwithinasystemhasanassociatedmodulationtransferfunction(MTF)and,asaresult,contributesto
theoverallMTFofthesystem.Thisincludestheimaginglens,camerasensor,imagecaptureboards,andvideocables,
forinstance.TheresultingMTFofthesystemistheproductofalltheMTFcurvesofitscomponents(Figure7).For
instance,a25mmfixedfocallengthlensanda25mmdoublegausslenscanbecomparedbyevaluatingtheresulting
systemperformanceofbothlenseswithaSonymonochromecamera.ByanalyzingthesystemMTFcurve,itis
straightforwardtodeterminewhichcombinationwillyieldsufficientperformance.Insomemetrologyapplications,for
example,acertainamountofcontrastisrequiredforaccurateimageedgedetection.Iftheminimumcontrastneedsto
be35%andtheimageresolutionrequiredis30lp/mm,thenthe25mmdoublegausslensisthebestchoice.
MTFisoneofthebesttoolsavailabletoquantifytheoverallimagingperformanceofasystemintermsofresolutionand
contrast.Asaresult,knowingtheMTFcurvesofeachimaginglensandcamerasensorwithinasystemallowsadesigner
tomaketheappropriateselectionwhenoptimizingforaparticularresolution.
Figure7:SystemMTFistheProductoftheMTFofIndividualComponent:LensMTFxCameraMTF=SystemMTF
[ViewLargerImage]
CHARACTERIZATIONOFMTF
DeterminingRealWorldMTF
Atheoreticalmodulationtransferfunction(MTF)curvecanbegeneratedfromtheopticalprescriptionofanylens.
Althoughthiscanbehelpful,itdoesnotindicatetheactual,realworldperformanceofthelensafteraccountingfor
manufacturingtolerances.Manufacturingtolerancesalwaysintroducesomeperformancelosstotheoriginalopticaldesign
sincefactorssuchasgeometryandcoatingdeviateslightlyfromanideallensorlenssystem.Forthisreason,inour
manufacturingsites,EdmundOpticsinvestsinopticaltestandmeasurementequipmentforquantifyingMTF.ThisMTF
testandmeasurementequipmentallowsforcharacterizationoftheactualperformanceofbothdesignedlensesand
commerciallenses(whoseopticalprescriptionisnotavailabletothepublic).Asaresult,preciseintegrationpreviously
limitedtolenseswithknownprescriptionscannowincludecommerciallenses.
Figure9:1951USAF
ResolutionTarget
[ViewLargerImage]
Figure10:Comparisonof#54855FiniteConjugate
MicroVideoLens(Left)and#59871CompactFixed
FocalLengthLens(Right)ResolvingGroup2,
Elements56(RedBoxes)andGroup3,Elements5
6(BlueBoxes)ona1951USAFResolutionTarget
[ViewLargerImage]
Figure11:Comparisonof#54855FiniteConjugate
MicroVideoLens(Left)and#59871CompactFixed
FocalLengthLens(Right)ResolvingGroup2,Elements5
6ona1951USAFResolutionTarget
[ViewLargerImage]
Figure12:Comparisonof#54855FiniteConjugate
MicroVideoLens(Left)and#59871CompactFixed
FocalLengthLens(Right)ResolvingGroup3,Elements5
6ona1951USAFResolutionTarget
[ViewLargerImage]
ReadingMTFGraphs/Data
AgreaterareaundertheMTFcurvedoesnotalwaysindicatetheoptimal
choice.Adesignershoulddecidebasedontheresolutionoftheapplicationat
hand.Aspreviouslydiscussed,anMTFgraphplotsthepercentageof
transferredcontrastversusthefrequency(cycles/mm)ofthelines.Afew
thingsshouldbenotedabouttheMTFcurvesofferedbyEdmundOptics:
1. EachMTFcurveiscalculatedforasinglepointinspace.Typicalfieldpoints
includeonaxis,70%field,andfullfield.70%isacommonreferencepoint
becauseitcapturesapproximately50%ofthetotalimagingarea.
2. OffaxisMTFdataiscalculatedforbothtangentialandsagittalcases
(denotedbyTandS,respectively).Occasionallyanaverageofthetwois
presentedratherthanthetwoindividualcurves.
3. MTFcurvesaredependentonseveralfactors,suchassystemconjugates,wavebands,andf/#.AnMTFcurveis
calculatedatspecifiedvaluesofeachtherefore,itisimportanttoreviewthesefactorsbeforedeterminingwhethera
componentwillworkforacertainapplication.
4. Thespatialfrequencyisexpressedintermsofcycles(orlinepairs)permillimeter.Theinverseofthisfrequency
yieldsthespacingofalinepair(acycleofoneblackbarandonewhitebar)inmillimeters.
5. ThenominalMTFcurveisgeneratedusingthestandardprescriptioninformationavailableinopticaldesignprograms.
Thisprescriptioninformationcanalsobefoundonourglobalwebsite,inourprintcatalogs,andinourlenscatalogs
suppliedtoZemax.ThenominalMTFrepresentsthebestcasescenarioanddoesnottakeintoaccount
manufacturingtolerances.
Conceptually,MTFcanbedifficulttograsp.Perhapstheeasiestwaytounderstandthisnotionoftransferringcontrast
fromobjecttoimageplaneisbyexaminingarealworldexample.Figures812compareMTFcurvesandimagesfortwo
25mmfixedfocallengthimaginglenses:#54855FiniteConjugateMicroVideoLensand#59871CompactFixedFocal
LengthLens.Figure8showspolychromaticdiffractionMTFforthesetwolenses.Dependinguponthetestingconditions,
bothlensescanyieldequivalentperformance.Inthisparticularexample,botharetryingtoresolvegroup2,elements5
6(indicatedbytheredboxesinFigure10)andgroup3,elements56(indicatedbytheblueboxesinFigure10)ona
1951USAFresolutiontarget(Figure9).Intermsofactualobjectsize,group3,elements56represent6.35
7.13lp/mm(14.0315.75m)andgroup3,elements56represent12.7014.25lp/mm(7.027.87m).Foraneasy
waytocalculateresolutiongivenelementandgroupnumbers,useour1951USAFResolutionEOTechTool.
Underthesametestingparameters,itiscleartoseethat#59871(withabetterMTFcurve)yieldsbetterimaging
performancecomparedto#54855(Figures1112).Inthisrealworldexamplewiththeseparticular1951USAF
elements,ahighermodulationvalueathigherspatialfrequenciescorrespondstoaclearerimagehowever,thisisnot
alwaysthecase.Somelensesaredesignedtobeabletoveryaccuratelyresolvelowerspatialfrequencies,andhavea
verylowcutofffrequency(i.e.theycannotresolvehigherspatialfrequencies).Hadthetargetbeengroup1,elements
56,thetwolenseswouldhaveproducedmuchmoresimilarimagesgiventheirmodulationvaluesatlowerfrequencies.
Figure8:ComparisonofPolychromaticDiffractionMTFfor#54855FiniteConjugateMicroVideoLens
(Left)and#59871CompactFixedFocalLengthLens(Right)[ViewLargerImage]
Modulationtransferfunction(MTF)isoneofthemostimportantparametersbywhichimagequalityismeasured.Optical
designersandengineersfrequentlyrefertoMTFdata,especiallyinapplicationswheresuccessorfailureiscontingenton
howaccuratelyaparticularobjectisimaged.TotrulygraspMTF,itisnecessarytofirstunderstandtheideasofresolution
andcontrast,aswellashowanobject'simageistransferredfromobjecttoimageplane.Whileinitiallydaunting,
understandingandeventuallyinterpretingMTFdataisaverypowerfultoolforanyopticaldesigner.Withknowledgeand
experience,MTFcanmakeselectingtheappropriatelensafareasierendeavordespitethemultitudeofofferings.
References
1. Geary,JosephM."Chapter34MTF:ImageQualityV."IntroductiontoLensDesign:withPracticalZEMAXExamples.
Richmond,Va:WillmannBell,2007.Print.
2. Hecht,Eugene."11.3.5TransferFunctions."Optics.SanFranciscoMontreal:Pearson/AddisonWesley,2002.Print.
3. Smith,WarrenJ."15.8TheModulationTransferFunction."ModernOpticalEngineering:theDesignofOptical
Systems.NewYork:McGrawHill,2008.Print.
4. Dereniak,Eustace."OPTI340OpticalDesign"TheUniversityofArizona,Tucson,AZ.Spring2010.Lecture.pp.345
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