Conventional sensing techniques work by doing a point-by-point mapping of information from a signal to a detector, whether in spectrometry or imaging. However, there are alternative ways to acquire a signal of interest. By structuring the spectral properties of a measurement, it is possible to impose a sensing pattern onto the signal of interest, and then algorithmically recover the signal from the detected measurements. This allows for a computational isolation of the signal from the measurement, which has potential benefits in flexibility, speed, or resolution. To that end, we have developed a device for spectral engineering using an array of optical resonators. We can then multiplex the properties of our device onto the signal, and the signal then becomes encoded with a known pattern. From this, we recover the signal. The flexibility in our device is shown as we use it for both imaging and spectrometry. We anticipate this method to be useful for a wide variety of applications from high-speed imaging to compact spectrometry.
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