Laser-based Coherent Diffractive Imaging

Coherent diffractive imaging is a powerful microscopy for the recovery of the complex exit-surface wave emerging from a sample of interest by recording the intensity of the field diffracted by it. Its application requires strict adherence to the underlying assumptions, which are well met by laser-like sources. This chapter describes the imaging method, the assumptions that underlie the solution to the inverse problem that it solves, and a survey of current methods and results from laser-based experiments.