Department of Physics, Unit Catalogue 2006/07

PH40070 Lasers & modern optics

Credits: 6

Level: Masters

Semester: 2

Assessment: EX80CW20

Requisites:

Before taking this unit you must (take PH20013 or take PH20060) and (take PH20017 or take PH20063) and take PH30023

Aims: The aim of this unit is to provide a treatment of the interactions of light with matter, with particular emphasis on the generation and manipulation of laser radiation in modern optical systems.
Learning Outcomes:
After taking this unit the student should be able to:
* analyse the diffraction of beams, in particular the propagation of Gaussian beams;
* design simple resonant cavities and analyse their main features;
* apply matrix methods to paraxial rays in multi-element systems of lenses and mirrors;
* describe and analyse the interactions between light and matter that lead to spontaneous emission and lasing in 3- and 4-level systems;
* treat cw, mode-locked and Q-switched laser operation and describe the resulting temporal, spectral and power characteristics;
* use the index ellipsoid to analyse the changing polarisation state of light in birefringent materials and to design simple half- and quarter-wave plates;
* describe the basic features of guided modes in planar and fibre waveguides and outline basic fabrication techniques;
* describe the origins of second and third order optical nonlinearities and analyse their effects on laser light in simple cases;
* treat the effects of group velocity dispersion and self-phase modulation on short pulses, and outline briefly how solitons form in optical fibres;
* discuss and analyse the operation of simple electooptic modulators.
Skills:
Numeracy T/F A, Problem Solving T/F A.
Content:
Diffractive Optics: Bandwidth of a finite pulse, diffraction at apertures, birefringence, matrix methods, Gaussian beams, laser cavities and resonators.
Lasers: Principles of laser operation, temporal and spectral characteristics, types of lasers, line-widths and broadening, Q switching and mode locking.
Manipulation of light: Dielectric waveguides, optical fibres, dispersion of short pulses, second and third order nonlinear optics, electro-optic modulation, solitons.

University | Catalogues for 2006/07