Fundamentals of Optics

Course guarantor:

Ivan Richter

Lecturer:

Pavel Kwiecien, Ivan Richter

Tutor:

Pavel Kwiecien, Ivan Richter

Supervisor:

Department of Laser Physics and Photonics

Synopsis:

The lecture covers the very basics of optics - electromagnetic theory, linear optical physics and material effects, basics of nonlinear effects, and geometrical optics. The main goal of the lecture is to obtain, on the bachelor level, broad and general information on optics, giving an essential orientation in the field, especially with respect to character of the bachelor work. Particular topics are further elaborated during departmental masters program. The lecture stems from the electrodynamic notion of plane waves in vacuum (including polarization effects), and further from material medium. It explains basics of linear and nonlinear response in material medium and dispersion properties. It next informs on consequences in anisotropic media, it explains processes induced by boundary conditions at interfaces. It also discusses the consequences of statistics on interference processes, explains elements of two-wave interference and their applications in interferometers. Based on the Fresnel diffraction integral, diffraction processes are presented in a graphical form, including fundamentals of grating diffraction. Based on this diffraction principle, basic functioning of holography is clarified. Finally, the lecture unravels the geometrical optics limit. It takes notice on geometrical approach imaging, substitutive schema of a paraxial imaging system, and optical aberrations. It shows fundamentals of imaging in optical instruments.

Requirements:

Two credit tests during the semester.

Syllabus of lectures:

1.Wave equation as the result of Maxwell equation, fundamentals of optical plane wave propagation in vacuum, basic types of waves, paraxial waves (examples: parabolic equation, Gaussian beam). Vacuum admittance, wave energy in vacuum.

2.Optical wave propagation in isotropic media, polarization vector, admittance of medium, effect of medium, absorption and dispersion in homogeneous media, nonlinear properties.

3.Processes on boundaries between two homogeneous media, polarization effects, Brewster angle, total internal reflection.

4.Polarization, description, polarization elements, anisotropic media.

5.Polychromatic wave, interference law, fundamentals of statistics and second-order coherence, measurability of statistical properties.

6.Light interference - two beam interference and optical interferometry.

7.Fresnel integral, near-field and far field diffraction, graphical interpretation.

8.Hologram as a general diffractive element, hologram fabrication, applications of holography.

9.Eiconal equation and basic postulates of geometrical optics.

10.Basic properties of ideal imaging, paraxial imaging, vergency of a refractive surface and system, vergency of two elements.

11.Optical aberrations of realistic optical systems.

12.Basic optical instruments and their properties - magnifying glass, ocular, microscope, telescopes.

Syllabus of tutorials:

Study Objective:

Knowledge: basic background knowledge of optics, both geometrical and wave.

Skills: basic orientation in the field of optics, skills in practical usage and application of basic optical principles.

Study materials:

Key references:

[1] Electronic texts stored in Microsoft Teams

Recommeded references:

[2] Saleh B.E.A., Teich M.C.: Fundamentals of Photonics. J. Wiley, 2019 (third edition); (český překlad: Základy fotoniky. Matfyzpress, Praha 1995.)

[3] Hecht E.: Optics. Pearson, 2017 (fifth edition).

[4] Shiell R., McNab I.: Pedrottis' Introduction to Optics. Cambridge University Press, 2025 (fourth edition).

[5] Asimellis G. Lectures in optics, vol. 1-4, SPIE, 2019

Note:

Time-table for winter semester 2025/2026:

Time-table is not available yet

Time-table for summer semester 2025/2026:

Time-table is not available yet

The course is a part of the following study plans:

• Fyzikální inženýrství - Počítačová fyzika (PS)
• Fyzikální inženýrství - Fyzikální inženýrství materiálů (elective course)
• Fyzikální inženýrství - Inženýrství pevných látek (elective course)
• Fyzikální inženýrství - Laserová technika a fotonika (PS)
• Physical Engineering - Physical Engineering od Materials (elective course)