Physical Optics and Coherence Theory ‘This spcil sso of Pwe and Applied Opie ie devoted w physical optics and coherence hoor in honour of Poeser Et Woe one ofthe weeds mos disguise seen in hese elds, whose 75th bitsy fall on 30 July Tat yea Enid Wolf was barn and grew up in Prague in Cascoslovatia. Bei of Jewish ii, fe fed the county ater K was ceeopcd by Nasi Germany in 1939. Alec be pros fn lay and France (here he wovked forthe Czech government ia ei), Re srved in Grea Beiain in the summer of 1940. He resumed his education the folowing yom the University of Britol where he cured 2 BSe degre in matemais in 1948. Th ‘was a6 postgraduate stdew tat he began his stties i opin, devgning te apheie catestor [I]. Ale teeving a PAD pte fom Britl in 1948 he moved wi is esis supervisor, Dr EH Lif, co Cambridge Unversity ar a reseach at athe university lobe. I was during this pec that he made several important comibton the Sitaction theory of abersions [2} and tothe sty of te stucate of ope Bl Ie focal regions,» subject which he stl contiewes to work on ty Also is tine Ne ‘sociation wit the exiled Hungarian sett Professor Dens Gabor Sega, Gtr, whe ‘was awarded the 1971 Nobel Pie in Physics fo the Invention of hologaphy, Was tem Imperial College. With the help of Gabo, Walfaexined hie next putin, soa to Not Laureate Max Born, vi was then the Tl Professor of Material Physi at the ‘nies of Eiburgh in Solan. Born wanted 0 pedace a cevised Eglsh rns Profesor Emil Wollot his 1933 work: Opi nd aod am asian lpn tic sk, However, asthe prot frotesse, the book evolved igo a enily amore compreensive and outhorative ‘Sins te pletion in 1959 Priniplerof Opis by Max Bow and Emil Wal (3) oF is mre widely toowa ‘Bora and WolP, has become one ofthe most widely ied books ia pigseal siete, having been ern 15 sims, and athe sane of wii, 2 ih eston {under preparation for publication by Camige Univers Pres Tllowing hs east Edinburgh {19S1-5e), fom whch univers he weived « DS lege in 1935, Wolf was a earch low athe Uivesiy of Manchester (1952-59). Hee ‘Wale bie hs seminal papers on coberence, a subjet which al ep vestigate SN Edburgh The theory of opal cree, which ad bon lnglyorgnted by Fite ene and otter, wis ata ime a raher empirical sees of formal by which the Vatiiy of imecerneeftnges could be calculates. Wall's 1955 pape {) paced the Theory on iy tise isis, and exalshed that the two-point eorelation function Fars) obeys in ra pace de pair of wave uations Ler ae vir ws oged 0 ‘Aso wile at Manche, Wot worked with Brian Thompson, then a PAD stadt (who Ibe ecame Dirosor ofthe Insitute of Opie and Provost ofthe University of Roches, to produce a welbnava experimental paper [3] which confined the eaeations of Sings ‘nies based on Woll and Zernick’'s ear theoreti werk. "in 19S7 Wo penta sabbatical year at New York Unive. and in 1959 he was ited ty Professor Robert Hopkins, decor ofthe Itt of Opis 10 jin the Faely of he ‘Universiy of Rochesier in New Yor Sate, wher he ha emaied ever sine, except for 3 yor ara Guggeoin fellow the Haverty of California, Berkeley (1966-67), 2 yea 98 2 Nig Profesor at the Univeraly of Tost (197473) an a semester sa Disinguisbed Visting Profesor atthe Univers of Cental Florida (sping 1998), I econ of his ‘Suvtning sccomplisments he wos appointed to he Wilson Chai of Opal Physits at the Univer of Rosketr in 1987. He has supevised (od conines to specvse) bout 50 PAD stolen isding the estos oft special nse, many of whom fave made onbuons toi sen sue, and aso conues the cegla eademic activities of 3 fal ime professor of physio the Univesy of Recest. WolP's work at Rochester in cohecence theory, g008 Geil of it in collaboration with Professor Leorard Monde, fed to 2 elsic review ance onthe subject in 1965, {Ths ancl which is one ofthe 100 most ci! ales published by Reviews af “Moder Piste since 1955, proved so popular tat te auors decided to expand it nto 2 fll length book which Saaly apeszed in 1995 (7). His ryporant investigations ito the foundations of radiometry andi eonnecion with eokeence theory (8. and ino he FRequeney representation of slonay random fells (Ie wo the discovery of = new tmerbanisby means of which te specrum of raion can be changed om propagation ‘ren i reese, In paul, penta ines canbe sified indepen ofthe eelative ‘novon of te source and the observer (1). This phenomenon, whic has come t be town as ‘ibe Wo elec andi dacated in som ofthe aricles ofthis special sue, ty hae very profound implication i esolgy. Ie =o Has appiaions to sul els {ropa adler sanded, communications sad emote sesing (oe a recent Yview ‘ofthis abet, se (11D, ties reseuch areas tht Professor Wolf has parsuod ince the reconsiructon of| jects fom sifiscted and seater light he published te serinal paper on difastion Troporanbe in 1968 1121 He also continued Bis woe on focud Hels (13, 14], anwith Y Li eve the fs explanation af the focal shift by which the position of the {oct spot aw be displaced towards the focusing fens by ace ees ESL. He hae also made important conrbatioes 10 difacton testy (for example the they of the Bouaday aitianon wave 16), the dheoy of a-ring source, pie cetera 0 Jnvotse prens andthe Evall-Oseen einetion there, Lack of spose foi us rom nga of is apes (oer 280 at ast count), so We hate conned waelves Lo mentioning 1 Tew rprsenatve examples of his work Professor Wolf has teen warded five hovorary doctors fom the University of Crosingen, Netherlands (1989, fom the University of Edinburgh, Seotand (198), from Palcky University, Ceecnosovaia (1992), from he Univesity of Bisa, Eagle (1997) ‘nd fore Laval Universi, Canada (192), In ation he is oe of eight feime honorary members f the Opel Society of America, of which he serves president im 1978, snd {ihe he bepod save ftom et when ater ponlesly atempied to cange ts name in 1989. He's ts a fellow of te American Physical Society, the Bris nse of Piyses and che rani Instead an hooray member ofthe Optical Soity of Idi, the Optical Soeety of Ausalia andthe Czech Academy of Sciences. He ha als ben the ir since is funding in 1961 f te review serie Progra in Otc, whish ow const (of 8 volumes, and he has also received many awards fr his conebons, Including te Tes Meda eh highest aver of the Opal Soiey of America “The subjects covered by the papers inthis soa, ik Professor WolP's eacezch interests, ange over wide varity of fields. Many ofthe papers ae writen verions of ta resent tthe Worksbop on Phil Opie and Coberege Theory ao erganned in honour of Profesor Wolf, which wns held at Long Beach, California, on 17 Oxo 187.” We have arangel the pages ino opis sectons. ax fllows coherence theory. ‘he Wolf ee and spall coherence spectroscopy scatoriag and propagation in rule ‘eda, propegaton In aaliser me propapnion i degeve medi, pentoaekee Propagation opis signal procetsing andthe fetonal Pore slo inverse ples nd difacuon tomography, sonadatingsoures, beam propagation and sharactraticn ‘a fay, focsed opi els I the spit of fairs. he paps are arnged in these fection in the oder inch they were ocsive, ‘We se sue that we express the sentiments of ll ur coniibtos and readers whan we wish Emil many more years of produce resarch, Le there were ay ices whch Wore too ne or inclusion fe this special ine, we ae most wing to conser tem for dhe Special issue we are planning for his 100 bay Ia 2022, provid teal likely 1 bcoma of equal lasing value a8 those of Profesor Wal? ‘The editors would ike to expres ct deep appreciation o Profesor Maio Beret, Michele Bouchatine a the etait ofthe Toural of the European Optal Soviet, 1s wel aso Tom Spice, Eliabelh Marin an tesa of IOP Publishing fr heir utrng ‘and highly professional ep i preparing tht specialise, This ite cold not have boon prodbed witht te exper help ofthe vatious anonymous fees wh reviewed the manor, References (0) Wot ad ty W518 he dmen of e polesP. 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Reyal asin of Technology, $100 48 Stctholn, Sweden Daniel PV James Theoretical Dison 7-4, Mail Stp 8-268, Los Alamos Navona Laboratory, Los Also, Ma 7545, USA