Peering into darkness with a vortex spatial filter

I propose to use as a window the dark core of an optical vortex to examine a weak background signal hidden in the glare of a bright coherent source. Applications such as the detection of an astronomical object, forward-scattered radiation, and incoherent light are described whereby signal enhancements of at least 7 orders of magnitude may be achieved. (C) 2001 Optical Society of America.