Mathematical Methods in Liquid Crystal Optics and Lens Design

Freeform lens design has numerous applications in imaging, aerospace, and biomedicine. Due to recent advancements in precision cutting and grinding, the manufacturing of freeform optical lenses with very high precision is now possible. However, there is still a significant lack of mathematical literature on the subject, and essentially none related to liquid crystals. Liquid crystals are appealing for use in imaging due to their flexibility and unique electro-optical properties. This book fills a gap in mathematical literature and attracts focus to liquid crystals for freeform lens design. It provides a rigorous mathematical perspective on liquid crystal optics, focusing on ray tracing in the geometric optics regime. A mathematical foundation is set to study lens design and ray tracing problems in liquid crystals. Additionally, it addresses absolute instruments, which are devices that image without any optical aberrations. These instruments cannot be designed through transformation