Optical-Memory Transport Imaging: A Transport-History Framework for Finite-Memory Tracers

Abstract

Finite-memory optical tracers encode upstream transport histories rather than instantaneous local flow velocities. We introduce optical-memory transport (OMT) imaging, a framework in which finite memory couples internal-state relaxation to transport through memory kernels. Under structured illumination, these histories are converted into measurable complex spatial-frequency response, whose local transfer-function limit yields constant-velocity inversion. Fisher-information analysis establishes kernel-dependent information limits and design principles for finite-memory transport imaging.