Understanding mask switching for THz compressive imaging

Compressive THz imaging holds the potential for increased spatial resolution and imaging speed when only a small number of detectors is available. The understanding of illumination patterns is essential in determining the performance for a compressive imaging setup. The results presented here start with an evaluation of the performance of different mask types. Then the influence of deviations of the real THz masks from the ideal commanded masks is discussed and finally the achievable switching speed is derived. The evaluation presented is a natural starting point when implementing compressive THz imaging in a real system.