Comparative Analysis of Geometric vs Diffraction Heterochromatic Lens Evaluations using Optical Transfer Function Theory

An f/3.5, 24-in. aerial-lens design has been evaluated heterochromatically to test the relative merits of geometric versus wave-optical transfer calculations. Both methods yielded substantially the same results for the lens under test. The geometric calculation required about 612 min of high-speed computer time while more than 3 h of equivalent computer time was required to make the diffraction calculations.