A Laboratory Demonstration of High-Resolution Hard X-Ray and Gamma-Ray Imaging Using Fourier-Transform Techniques

A laboratory imaging system has been developed to study the use of Fourier-transform techniques in high-resolution hard x-ray and γ-ray imaging, with particular emphasis on possible applications to high-energy astronomy. We discuss considerations for the design of a Fourier-transform inlager and describe the instrumentation used in the laboratory studies. Several analysis methods for image reconstruction are discussed including the CLEAN algorithm and maximum entropy methods. Images obtained using these methods are presented.