Three-dimensional images generated by quadrature interferometry

Quadrature detection techniques have been applied to images obtained from a Mach-Zehnder interferometer with differently polarized beams to yield the real and the imaginary parts of the diffracted fields simultaneously. This approach eliminates the need for phase retrieval by providing complete information on the complex amplitude of the diffracted signal. We present results in which we demonstrate our ability to reconstruct two-and three-dimensional microscopic objects from their complex diffraction patterns. (C) 1998 Optical Society of America.