UC Santa Cruz

Christopher P. Hoseit

Systolic Array Implementation of the Fourier Transform

Abstract

Adaptive optics is a relatively new technology originally designed to eliminate negative effects of the atmosphere on telescopic images. This technology allows ground based telescopes to achieve resolutions comparable to the Hubble space telescope. Adaptive optics is the "cheaper" solution to capturing better images than sending telescopes into space. Ground based telescopes can be built with larger mirrors providing more light collecting area and ultimately better pictures. Telescopes on the ground can also be more easily maintained and upgraded than telescopes in space. Using a combination of innovative technology such as Laser Guide stars and deformable mirrors, (MEMs) devices, along with significant software and hardware engineering to implement algorithms allow adaptive optics to improve imaging with telescopes.

This thesis work implements a subset of the hardware system required for the systolic array tomography algorithm on a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). Previous technology analysis has concluded that a FPGA platform is suitable for implementing the tomography algorithm. The algorithm will be verified through simulation and comparing results with values generated in a Microsoft Excel script. The tomography engine is a subset of the real time control system described in [1]. Future work will involve implementing the full scale of the algorithm on all of the required hardware.

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This thesis presents: 1) the scalable design of the Fourier transform, 2) implementation results and simulation verification.