Overview

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

A practical, hands-on introduction to optical engineering and lasers. Covers the concepts of light, optics (geometric optics, Gaussian optics, multiple optical elements, lens aberrations), laser concepts, operational details of major laser types, laser interactions with optical systems, laser applications in engineering and medicine, complex optical system design and fiber optics. Labs cover optical systems, lasers measurements, optical CAD design, holography.

COURSE DETAILS:

Description

Optical Engineering is the study of the how optical elements can be applied to the design and construction of optical instruments, and their application to practical engineering problems. Lasers are increasingly moving from the laboratory into commercial products and industrial manufacturing. This course concentrates on the practical applications of
optics/laser and less on the physics behind the behaviour. It starts with a basic explanation of the concepts of light then moves on to a concentrated understanding of optics, optical systems and optical design. Lasers operations, and interactions with optical systems (Gaussian optics) are covered, followed by the operational details and characteristics of the major laser types. The course then goes in detail of laser applications in engineering, an understanding of optical design and an introduction to fiber optics. In the lab the students will learn how use basic optical benches, lens setups, measurement toolsand basic measurements with lasers and basic optical CAD concepts. Undergraduates (470) will do the three experimental labs while 894 Graduate students three labs and choose to do a minor or major project.

Course Outline

Week 1: Introduction to light
Spectrum, electromagnetic nature of light, black body radiation, optical interaction with materials, units of optical
measurement, photometry and radiometry

Week 2: Basic Optical elements
Reflection, mirrors, refraction, lenses, human eye

Week 3: Geometric Optics
Geometric optics: reflective systems, refractive systems, matrix and ray tracing. Setting up optics in the lab

Week 4-6: Introduction to lasers & Laser Safety
Basic laser theory of operations, Gaussian optics; characteristics practical operations and care of major laser types:
Gas, Ion, Eximer, Solid State, Dye, Metal Vapour, Semiconductor, X-ray
Dangers in laser uses, potential damages, safety procedures

Week 7: Aberrations in optical systems
Aberrations from mirrors or lenses: beyond the first order approximations of geometric optics

Week 8: Polarization, Interferometry and interferometers
Polarization of light by materials: applications to the LCD display, interference and interferometers

Week 9: Diffraction & Spectrometers
Diffraction of light, Fraunhofer and Fresnel, optical resolution, diffraction gratings, spectrometers, nonlinear optical
switches.

Week 9b: How optical elements are fabricated
Fabrication of mirrors and lenses; methods of measuring optical surfaces, lens/mirror quality

Week 10-11: Optical system Design & Zemax CAD
Design of multi-element optical systems; eyeglasses, achromatic optical elements, eyepieces, microscopes, reflecting and
refracting telescopes, multi-element photographic lenses, digital cameras, optical CAD (Zemax).

Week 11-12: Laser Applications
Laser heat treatment, laser heat flow calculations, surface melting, alloying, cladding, cutting, medical applications.

Week 12: Laser Consumer and Holography Applications
Compact disk, DVD operation/mastering, Applications in microelectronics, and holography

Week 13: Photonics, Fiber optics and Integrated Optics
Photodetectors, nonlinear optics, Guided light, integrated optics, Photonics. Laser Fusion, Laser flight, Course summery.

Laboratory

Labs will consist of demonstration labs and experimental project labs. Demonstrations will include the operation and use
of laboratory bench optics devices and alignment. 3 Labs are planned for the course:

(1) Lens optics and aberrations measurements
(2) Spectrometer measurement of laser and light sources
(3) CW laser optical setup (beam expander) and beam measurements
(4) Laser dye bleaching
(5) Creation of Holograms lab (grads only).
Thesis graduate students will do either a major or minor project in place of lab 4, which will be either from a list of projects
or a project connected to their graduate studies.

Lab demos:
LA01 Wednesday 17:30-19:20 ASB 10878
LA02 Friday 12:30-14:20 ASB 10878
These times are for demos of labs. Students book time for their own lab in the same room

Laser Safety
Students must attend the Laser Safety lecture in the class in order to do the labs involving lasers. Students attending that
class can take a test

Assignments

Assignments will be given every 2-3 weeks after the second week of class. Assignments will be emailed to the students.
Each student gets a separate assignment with the same questions but different parameters and solutions. If you used
someone else’s numbers you get zero on the question. If you do that twice within one assignment you get zero on the
assignment. You will be emailed a solution set to your specific questions.

Tutorial/Problem Workshops

Tutorials will be held on an as announced basis (not every week but about every 2nd week) – typically in the hour before
class (either day). These will involve workshops where a problem is assigned, worked through in groups, and then
solutions given. Typically 2 problems per session. Post workshop problem solutions will be posted to web site.

Grading

Materials

RECOMMENDED READING: