Abstract
The basic concepts and theories related to our knowledge of the formation of images are rather old; they developed mainly during the 19th century under the impetus of Abbe, Seidel, Rayleigh and others, but they have made important progress during the last few decades, especially since the work of F. Zernike. The main facts of this recent progress are reviewed by looking at three aspects: the introduction of new mathematical tools, the progress in physical optics, and the influence of technical improvements.

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