3 Rules For Plano Convex Lens Design

Plano convex lens design is simple compared to many optical systems, but there are fine details that a lens designer needs to pay attention to. Plano convex lenses are lenses with a positive focal length. This is a very common configuration, and a plano convex can be manufactured in different glass types, with different coatings, […]

Understanding image depth of field

sensor resolution

Depth of field is a distance range where the image optical resolution is as high as possible for that lens, i.e. an image appears to be in focus. When starting a lens design program, having a good understanding of this parameter’s physics will help you and your consultant achieve the best possible design. In this […]

Light Source Safety Calculator

Laser Warning Sign

One important aspect of any design is user safety. This is especially important when using light sources like lasers and LEDs that may be observed by the naked eye. Disregarding safety can lead to product recalls, lawsuits, and harm to users. To protect users, a number of standards related to light and eye safety have […]

Advanced Apochromatic Lens Design for Exceptional Imaging Quality

Figure 1. Apochromatic lens. Image from ZEMAX sample designs.

In an achromatic lens design, we optimize such that two wavelengths, usually red (590nm) and blue (495nm), focus on the same image plane. This is done to reduce chromatic aberration. In this article, we’ll talk about a similar design type called an Apochromatic lens design. What is an apochromatic lens? The goal of the apochromatic […]

Laser Beam Caustic: Explained

Figure 1. After light is refracted by the surface of the pool, it crosses and overlaps creating bright patterns (called caustics) at the bottom of the pool.

One parameter that can be used to evaluate the quality of a laser beam is what’s called a Beam Caustic. A caustic, in general, is an “envelope” that defines the extent of a beam of light after they have been refracted (or reflected ) by a curved surface. As the light beams propagate they cross […]

Top Types of Optical Prisms

Introduction One of the most common images for any that has study optics is that of Sir Isaac Newton with a beam of white light going through a glass prism and a rainbow coming out on the other side.  It is one of the most famous optical experiments, not only for its simplicity, but also […]