Optics

Understand the nature of light and how it can be manipulated for a variety of applications ubiquitous in daily life.

This course is an introduction to classical and modern optics, which has fundamental applications in fields as diverse as astronomy, medicine, communications and lighting. Optical phenomena are ubiquitous in nature and optical technologies pervade almost every sphere of human life. This course, taught in the 3rd year, synthesizes material taught in earlier courses such as Electricity and Magnetism, Mathematical Methods in Physics, and Wave Phenomena. Students are exposed to several canonical experiments spanning ray optics, polarization, Fourier optics, interferometry, and microscopy among others. This course will also set the foundation for students interested in both postgraduate level courses in optics and in careers in optical science and engineering.

Readings:

1. Eugene Hecht, Optics (4th Ed), Addison-Wesley

2. Saleh and Teich, Fundamental of Photonics (3rd Ed), Wiley