Band-limited angular spectrum method for numerical simulation of free-space propagation in far and near fields

A novel method is proposed for simulating free-space propagation. This method is an improvement of the angular spectrum method (AS). The AS does not include any approximation of the propagation distance, because the formula thereof is derived directly from the Rayleigh-Sommerfeld equation. However, the AS is not an all-round method, because it produces severe numerical errors due to a sampling problem of the transfer function even in Fresnel regions. The proposed method resolves this problem by limiting the bandwidth of the propagation field and also expands the region in which exact fields can be calculated by the AS. A discussion on the validity of limiting the bandwidth is also presented.