Diffractive optics involves the manipulation of light using diffractive optical elements (DOEs). DOEs are being widely applied in such areas as telecommunications, electronics, laser technologies and biomedical engineering. Computer design of diffractive optics provides an authoritative guide to the principles and applications of computer-designed diffractive optics.

The theoretical aspects underpinning diffractive optics are initially explored, including the main equations in diffraction theory and diffractive optical transformations. Application of electromagnetic field theory for...