Phase retrieval from the intensity of a volume speckle field

The phase of an object wave which is lost in the detection process may be reconstructed either by interferometric methods like digital holography or by phase retrieval methods. One possible drawback of digital holography is the use of the reference beam which entails additional optical elements and a tedious and sometimes cumbersome process of optimizing the beam ratio. Phase retrieval methods offer a simple experimental setup and procedure. We present a method where sequential intensity measurements of a volume speckle field and the wave propagation equation allow the reconstruction of a complete object wave field with both amplitude and phase information. The phase retrieval technique is applied to the investigation of diffusely transmitting and reflecting objects. The effects of different parameters on the quality of reconstructions are investigated by simulation and experiment.