Programmable optical processing device employing stacked light modulator elements in fractional Fourier planes

An optical processing system, said system comprising:

• an electronically-controllable image source for emitting an optical image responsive to at least one incoming electronic image signal;
• a first imaging optical element having two distinct sides, the first imaging optical element configured to accept the optical image at one of the two sides and to alter the optical image according to a imaging process, and to provide a first altered optical image from the second of the two sides of the element;
• a plurality of light-modulator array elements, at least a plurality of which are responsive to associated incoming light-modulation control signals associated with fractional Fourier plane transfer functions, and adjacently stacked so that consecutive pairs of light-modulator array elements are immediately adjacent with one another so as to form a stack with a first image passing surface at one edge of the stack and a second image passing surface at the other edge of the stack, the plurality of light-modulator array elements arranged so that the first image passing surface receives the first altered optical image, the second image passing surface providing a second altered optical image;
• a second imaging image forming element arranged to receive the second altered optical image at one of two sides;
• and
• an electronic image sensor facing the second of the two sides of the second imaging image forming element;
• wherein the emitted optical image is directed through the first imaging image forming element, producing an optical field directed through the stacked plurality of light-modulator array elements and subsequently directed through the second imaging image forming element and sensed by the electronic image sensor.