Im not sure if this has been posted elsewhere or is old news; sorry if it is/ has.. unsure how this development will impact telescope lens design, but from what I read it looks like it could in a big way.....
"Applied physicists at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have created an ultrathin, flat lens that focuses light without imparting the distortions of conventional lenses. At a mere 60 nanometers thick, the flat lens is essentially two-dimensional, yet its focusing power approaches the ultimate physical limit set by the laws of diffraction. "
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...0824093523.htm