Volumetric Light-field Encryption at the Microscopic Scale
This enables optical encryption for industrial and biomedical applications in processing and securing 3D data at the microscopic scale, representing a new level of encryption.
The paper tackles the problem of encrypting three-dimensional volumetric information at the microscopic scale by developing a light-field based method that uses a microlens array and random phase/amplitude masks, resulting in successful retrieval of 3D data from a single 2D light-field image with faithful reconstruction.
We report a light-field based method that allows the optical encryption of three-dimensional (3D) volumetric information at the microscopic scale in a single 2D light-field image. The system consists of a microlens array and an array of random phase/amplitude masks. The method utilizes a wave optics model to account for the dominant diffraction effect at this new scale, and the system point-spread function (PSF) serves as the key for encryption and decryption. We successfully developed and demonstrated a deconvolution algorithm to retrieve spatially multiplexed discrete and continuous volumetric data from 2D light-field images. Showing that the method is practical for data transmission and storage, we obtained a faithful reconstruction of the 3D volumetric information from a digital copy of the encrypted light-field image. The method represents a new level of optical encryption, paving the way for broad industrial and biomedical applications in processing and securing 3D data at the microscopic scale.