Course Description
An overview of the major topics in optical engineering, covering both optical instruments as computer systems and the use of optical subsystems in computer systems. Emphasis will be on geometrical optics; major topics will be optical instruments and sensors, multilayer thin films, waveguides, and fiber optics.
Additional Requirements for Graduate Students:
Graduate students will make an oral presentation on a project
and will do the following additional work:
1. In addition to writing a ray-tracing program, graduate
students will be required to include calculations of the Seidel
aberrations in this program.
2. In addition to performing basic calculations with the
Fresnel and Fraunhoffer equations, graduate students will have
an additional assignment concerning the Frenel and Fraunhoffer
diffraction equations, wherein they will program the
calculation of these formulas and include the effects of
defocus and aberrations.
3. In addition to the simple optical instrument design that all
students will complete, graduate students will be assigned an
additional optical instrument design project in which they will
write their own software to assist them. Examples include
designing a wave-guiding structure, a multilayer coating or
dielectric mirror, or other advanced project.
Athena Title
INTRO OPTICAL ENGR
Prerequisite
MATH 2700 and (PHYS 1252 or PHYS 1212-1212L)
Semester Course Offered
Offered every year.
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
The course will approach optics from a design perspective, and at least one design project will be assigned. Throughout the course, optical design software and numerical simulations will be taught as an integral part of the design process. Current topics in optics, such as adaptive optics and photonic crystals, will also be introduced. Upon completion of this course, students should be able to: • Solve problems in geometrical and wave optics (find the image planes, apertures, entrance and exit pupils and magnification in an optical system, find the polarization state) • Explain the principle of operation of important optical instruments such as microscopes and telescopes. • Design simple optical systems such as optical cavities, fiber coupling optics, and afocal relay systems.
Topical Outline
• Analysis of geometrical optical systems • Optical instruments (microscopes, telescopes, etc.) • Aberrations in lens systems • Fourier optics and Diffraction • Adaptive optics and aberration correction • Thin films, optical filters and dielectric mirrors • Optical waveguides and cavities • Opto-mechatronics and optical sensors