Robust phase unwrapping by spinning iteration

This work describes a rapid-phase unwrapping algorithm that combines the rapidity and simplicity of a path-dependent algorithm and the robustness of a path-independent algorithm by rotating the phase map or the unwrapping direction 90 degrees after a scan in one direction. It offers a solution for noise-contaminated phase data, which includes artifacts, complex-shaped borders, or regions of holes. The algorithm can be used in real-time processing. In addition, a phase-dislocation masking method is presented that can be used to detect and clean inconsistent data and improve the rms values of signal-to-noise ratio in unwrapped phase maps.