Hybrid acousto-optic Fourier processor for imaging spatially inhomogeneous acoustic fields

A new method is proposed for imaging spatially inhomogeneous acoustic fields. The approach is based on the Fourier transform of a coherent light field formed as a result of the Bragg diffraction of a probing laser beam on an ensemble of quasi-plane acoustic waves in a lithium niobate crystal. These waves appear as a result of the transformation of an imaged acoustic field by a spherical acoustic lens. The proposed method has been experimentally verified using model multielement acoustic sources.