An optical signal is compressively sampled using an optical component to
encode multiplex measurements. A mapping from the optical signal to a
detector array is created using spatial and/or spectral dispersion.
Signals transmitted by a plurality of transmissive elements of the
optical component are detected at each sensor of a plurality of sensors
of the detector array dispersed spatially with respect to the optical
component. Each sensor of a plurality of sensors produces a measurement
resulting in a number of measurements. A number of estimated optical
signal values is calculated from the number of measurements and a
transmission function. The transmission function is selected so that the
number of measurements is less than the number of estimated optical
signal values.