Optical System Design: First Order Layout - Principles and Practice

Level: Introductory Length: 9 hours Format: Online Intended Audience: This course is intended for engineers, scientists, managers, technicians and students who need to use or design optical systems and want to understand the principles of image formation by optical systems. No previous knowledge of optics is assumed in the material development, and only basic math is used (algebra, geometry and trigonometry). By the end of the course, these techniques will allow the design and analysis of relatively sophisticated optical systems. Description: This course provides the background and principles necessary to understand how optical imaging systems function, allowing you to produce a system layout which will satisfy the performance requirements of your application. This course teaches the methods and techniques of arriving at the first-order layout of an optical system by a process which determines the required components and their locations. This process will produce an image of the right size and in the right location. A special emphasis is placed on understanding the practical aspects of the design of optical systems. Optical system imagery can readily be calculated using the Gaussian cardinal points or by paraxial ray tracing. These principles are extended to the layout and analysis of multi-component systems. This course includes topics such as imaging with thin lenses and systems of thin lenses, stops and pupils, and afocal systems. The course starts by providing the necessary background and theory of first-order optical design followed by numerous examples of optical systems illustrating the design process. Learning Outcomes: This course will enable you to: - specify the requirements of an optical system for your application including magnification, object-to-image distance, and focal length - diagram ray paths and do simple ray tracing - describe the performance limits imposed on optical systems by diffraction and the human eye - predict the imaging characteristics of multi-component systems - determine the required element diameters - apply the layout principles to a variety of optical instruments including telescopes, microscopes, magnifiers, field and relay lenses, zoom lenses, and afocal systems - adapt a known configuration to suit your application - grasp the process of the design and layout of an optical system Instructor(s): Julie Bentley is an Associate Professor at The Institute of Optics, University of Rochester and has been teaching undergraduate and graduate level courses in geometrical optics, optical design, and product design for more than 15 years. She received her B.S., M.S., and PhD in Optics from the The Institute of Optics, University of Rochester. After graduating she spent two years at Hughes Aircraft Co. in California designing optical systems for the defense industry and then twelve years at Corning Tropel Corporation in Fairport, New York designing and manufacturing precision optical assemblies such as microlithographic inspection systems. She has experience designing a wide variety of optical systems from the UV to the IR, refractive and reflective configurations, for both the commercial and military markets.