Lens design using iterative random selection of constructional parameters.

The different methods of optical systems' optimization such as Newton and least squares along with their modifications are reviewed. The Monte Carlo technique, as a statistical method which can overcome the shortcomings of these classic methods (such as the rate of convergence, the possibility of finding the overall minimum and avoiding local minima), is presented and compared with the others. A numerical example is presented to verify the method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]