Optoelectronics
Arkady Major
ECE 4580, Lecture 6
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Previous Highlights
Geometric Optics
• Basic concepts of geometrical optics were introduced. In
geometric optics wave-like properties of light are not considered
• At the interface between two different media light can undergo
reflection and refraction. They are governed by Snell’s law.
• Wave reflection at the boundary is described by Fresnel
equations. Reflectivity of a surface is characterized by its
reflection coefficient R.
• Two “lossless” conditions exist for light reflection or refraction:
TIR and Brewster’s angle.
• Optical tunneling can be used to make beam splitters with
controlled transmission/reflection ratio.
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Outline
• Geometric Optics
• Lenses and mirrors
• Image formation
• Basic optical components
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Lenses
By far the most important device based on the principle of refraction is the
lens. It is the most frequently used component in optical devices and has
multiple optoelectronics applications.
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en.wikipedia.org
Ray Tracing
The properties of a lens can be discovered by ray tracing using Snell’s law.
1 1
2 3
O 2
3 F
Optical axis F I F F
Positive lens Negative lens
Nodal plane
A lens is described by optical axis, nodal plane, focal point (F) and focal
length (f). To determine the object and image relationship, tracing only two
of the three principal rays is necessary. All rays start at the tip of the object:
1) Ray 1 is parallel to the optical axis. After the lens, the ray passes
through the focal point on its other side (positive lens); or refracts at the
lens surfaces as if coming from the left focal point (negative lens).
2) Ray 2 passes through the center of a lens (both cases) unaltered.
3) Ray 3 passes through the left focal point (positive lens) or passes
toward the right focal point (negative lens). In both cases after the lens
the rays emerge parallel to the optical axes. 5
en.wikipedia.org
Ray Tracing
A graphic representation, drawn in scale, is often quite satisfactory for
solving lens problems in optoelectronics systems.
Find the image of a 4 mm diameter circle that is 15 mm away from a lens
with focal length of 10 mm.
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E. Uiga, Optoelectronics
Ray Tracing
The object-image relationship can be described by three conditions.
The magnification factor M is the
MI
ratio of image size to object size: O
A case when the object is closer than one focal
length to the lens. Only virtual image can be formed:
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E. Uiga, Optoelectronics en.wikipedia.org
Thin Lens
A thin lens is a lens with a thickness (distance along the optical axis
between the two surfaces of the lens) that is negligible in comparison with
the object and image distances. Lenses whose thickness is not negligible
are sometimes called thick lenses.
The focal length of a lens depends on the refractive index n of the material
and the radii of curvature R of lens surfaces. It may be calculated using the
Lensmaker’s equation:
1 1 1
(n 1)
f R1 R2
1 1 1
Another prime lens equation can be written in terms
of the object-to-lens and image-to-lens distances: f S1 S 2
Example: Find the focal length of a lens made from crown glass (n = 1.52) with
a flat front face and a rear face radius R of 100 mm.
1 1 1
(1.52 1) 0.0052 and f 192.3 mm
f 100
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Converging (diverging) lenses have positive (negative) focal lengths.
The Lensmaker’s Equation
n1 sin( ) n2 sin(1 )
α θ1 For paraxial rays:
θ0 φ
α1 y y
θ0
y
φ R 0
R s1
Optical axis C y y
s1 s2 1 1
R s2
n1 n2
In this case Snell’s law becomes:
y y y y
n1 n2 or
R s1 R s2
n1 n2 n2 n1
s1 s2 R
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The Lensmaker’s Equation
s2
s22 This is a real image
R1 for lens surface R1,
R2 but virtual object for
Optical axis n n1 n lens surface R2
s1 s11
For the first refracting surface R1 For the second refracting surface R2
n n1 n1 n n1 n n n1
s1 s11 R1 s2 s22 R2
For a thin lens we can neglect its thickness: s2 = -s11. After substitution and
addition of both equations to eliminate n1/s11 terms, we can get:
1 1 n1 n 1 1
For the thin lens the focal length is
defined as the image distance for an s1 s22 n R1 R2
object at infinity, or the object distance
for an image at infinity:
1 1 1 1 n1 n 1 1
and
sobject simage f f n R1 R210
Aberrations
Distortion introduced by the lens which causes the image to be not perfect
replica of the object is called aberration.
Spherical aberration occurs because spherical surfaces are not the ideal
shape with which to make a lens. Spherical aberration causes beams parallel
to, but distant from, the lens axis to be focused in a slightly different place
than beams close to the axis. This manifests itself as a blurring of the image.
Lenses in which closer-to-ideal, non-spherical surfaces are used are called
aspheric lenses. Spherical aberration can be minimized by careful choice of
the curvature of the surfaces for a particular application.
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en.wikipedia.org
Aberrations
Chromatic aberration is caused by the dispersion of the lens material—
the variation of its refractive index n with the wavelength of light. Since,
from the formulae above, f is dependent upon n, it follows that different
wavelengths of light will be focused to different positions. Chromatic
aberration of a lens is seen as fringes of color around the image. It can be
minimized by using an achromatic doublet (or achromat) in which two
materials with differing dispersion are bonded together to form a single
lens.
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en.wikipedia.org
NA and f-number
The numerical aperture (NA) of an optical system is a dimensionless
number that characterizes the range of angles over which the system
can accept or emit light:
F θ
NA n sin( ) D
f
The f-number (sometimes called focal ratio, f-ratio, or relative
aperture) of an optical system or a lens is a ratio of the focal length to
the working diameter:
f
f /# N For example, N = 5 or f /5
D
For small angles (NA < 0.25 or f/# > 2)
D 1
sin( ) and f /#
2f 2 NA
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Mirrors
The same imaging characteristics that were discussed for lenses can
be performed using reflective curved mirrors (metal or dielectric).
Lenses Mirrors
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en.wikipedia.org
Lenses and Mirrors
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Hecht, Optics
Ray Tracing
Using this applet we can design a single or multiple lens system and
study the image-forming properties of lenses, determine location and size
of an image, as well as beam propagation via ray tracing procedure
http://www.mtholyoke.edu/~mpeterso/classes/phys301/geomopti/twolenses.html
Optical Components
THORLABS online catalog
www.thorlabs.com
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Summary
• In geometric optics wave-like properties of light are not
considered.
• Lens is a very important optical component and can be
used to produce images of objects. Depending on
geometry they can be positive or negative.
• Lenses work by delaying specific parts of an incident
wavefront. Thin lens has a negligible thickness.
• Ray tracing is usually used to determine the size and
location of the formed image.
• Lens imperfections cause image aberration.
• Mirrors can be configured to act as lenses.
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Next Lecture
Lecture 7
Geometric Optics
Ray matrix method
Beam Optics:
Gaussian beams
Propagation and focusing
Beam quality factor
Beam matrix method
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