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Published: September 27, 2006
Scientists who study the behavior of light study the physical sciences of Optics. This study ranges from x-rays, to microwaves, all the way up to the study of vision. The two studies of optics are geometrical optics and physical optics. Simply put, optical sciences is the study of light and it's behavior.
The history of Optics in Science goes all the way back to Euclid in 300 B.C. In his observations he saw that light traveled in straight lines. When Euclid looked at something, his eyesight traveled from his eyes to the object. He then studied the object's size in relation to their angle to the eye.
After Euclid, there was Hero around 100 to 150 B.C. Hero created a geometrical method of contrasting a ray of light reflected from a plane mirror in relation to the source and the point of observation.
Scientist after scientist, century after century. From Ptolemy, Roger Bacon, Theodoric Freiberg, Kepler, Galileo, Isaac Newton, all the way to Michael Faraday, Foucault and Einstein made improvements on the principles of light.
Examples of the first experiments with light and optics first occured in 1845. Scientist Michael Faraday passed polarized light through glass in a magnetic field and described the effects. This became known as the Faraday Effect. Five years later, J.L. Foucault, a French Scientist, used a rotating mirror to figure out the speed of light in air. Later that year, Focault figured that the speed of light in standing water is less than that of air. Focault used a rotating mirror for that experiment.
Optics can be considered one of the most important components of a laser instrument. The optics consist of lenses, prisms, mirrors or other material inside the laser machinery. The science of optics has many practical purposes in everyday life. Compact disc players, fiber optics such as in Internet and
telecommunications connections, and LED lights are all connected to the optical sciences.
Besides sapphire, ruby, YAG, or a dozen other materials that are needed to produce laser light, several other materials are needed as well. The windows and substrates that are configured inside the machinery can be Plane, Wedged or Tapered. The use of Prisms for laser creation can be Roof Type, Beam Splitter, Truncated, 90 degree reflecting, or 60 degree dispersing. The laser creation also requires lenses and either reflection or anti-reflection coated laser optics.
Take for instance a basic right-angle prism. Made of silica and precision polished, prisms are used in visible, infrared, and thermally sensitive applications, depending on the type of silica used (BK 7 or UV).
A three millimeter Ultrafast Laser Output Coupler Mirror is another vital component of laser creation. Along with Prisms, an OC .20 mirror that is featured on Advanced Photonics' website is designed for laser creation in the 720 to 890 nanometer range. The OC .20 mirror is three millimeters thick and reflects at 88%, transmission of 12%.
As far as optical science work going on now and in the future, there still seems to be a lot of work left to be done. Optics are used in quantum physics and mechanics. Quantum cryptography is used to encrypt and decode messages or their keys in order to send and receive private information. Quantum mechanics are also continuing to study ions. Lastly, there is optics and photonics work being done in the medical, consumer electronics, and telecommunications industries.
The Optical Society of America (OSA) "promotes the generation, application, archiving and worldwide dissemination of knowledge in optics and photonics." The OSA Foundation was founded in 2002. The Foundation is a charitable organization that supports programs to teach science in developing and other needy countries. The OSA itself was founded in 1916 and is currently headquartered in Washington, D.C. "The mission of OSA is to promote the generation, application and archiving of knowledge in optics and photonics and to disseminate this knowledge worldwide." The headquarters is staffed by 125 employees and boasts 14,000 members in 81 countries around the world.
Lasers-Optics-USA/ UK. "A brief history of Optics." November 5, 1996. Copyright Web Science Resources. September 27, 2006. http://members.aol.com/WSRNet/D1/hist.htm
Microsoft Encarta. "Optics." Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia. Copyright 2006. Microsoft Corporation. September 27, 2006. http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761576625_3/Op tics.html#howtocite
Science & Engineering. "Optics and Photonics." Science & Engineering-UK. Science-engineering.net. September 27, 2006. http://www.science-engineering.net/optics_science. htm
American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. Definition of "Optics." Updated and Copyright 2005. Houghton Mifflin Company. Ask.com. Copyright 2006. IAC Search and Media. September 25, 2006. http://www.ask.com/reference/dictionary/ahdict/322 03/optics
Meller Optics. "Information" page. Meller Optics, Inc. Copyright 2006. September 25, 2006. http://www.melleroptics.com/shopping/materials.asp
Advanced Photonics. "Products > Optics." Copyright 2004. Advanced Photonics. September 25, 2006. http://www.advancedphotonicsindia.com/PRODUCTS/OPT ICS.ASP
www.osa.org. Deborah Herrin-Senior Director of Information Technology. Copyright 2006. Optical Society of America. September 25, 2006. http://www.osa.org/
The history of Optics in Science goes all the way back to Euclid in 300 B.C. In his observations he saw that light traveled in straight lines. When Euclid looked at something, his eyesight traveled from his eyes to the object. He then studied the object's size in relation to their angle to the eye.
After Euclid, there was Hero around 100 to 150 B.C. Hero created a geometrical method of contrasting a ray of light reflected from a plane mirror in relation to the source and the point of observation.
Scientist after scientist, century after century. From Ptolemy, Roger Bacon, Theodoric Freiberg, Kepler, Galileo, Isaac Newton, all the way to Michael Faraday, Foucault and Einstein made improvements on the principles of light.
Examples of the first experiments with light and optics first occured in 1845. Scientist Michael Faraday passed polarized light through glass in a magnetic field and described the effects. This became known as the Faraday Effect. Five years later, J.L. Foucault, a French Scientist, used a rotating mirror to figure out the speed of light in air. Later that year, Focault figured that the speed of light in standing water is less than that of air. Focault used a rotating mirror for that experiment.
Optics can be considered one of the most important components of a laser instrument. The optics consist of lenses, prisms, mirrors or other material inside the laser machinery. The science of optics has many practical purposes in everyday life. Compact disc players, fiber optics such as in Internet and
telecommunications connections, and LED lights are all connected to the optical sciences.
Besides sapphire, ruby, YAG, or a dozen other materials that are needed to produce laser light, several other materials are needed as well. The windows and substrates that are configured inside the machinery can be Plane, Wedged or Tapered. The use of Prisms for laser creation can be Roof Type, Beam Splitter, Truncated, 90 degree reflecting, or 60 degree dispersing. The laser creation also requires lenses and either reflection or anti-reflection coated laser optics.
Take for instance a basic right-angle prism. Made of silica and precision polished, prisms are used in visible, infrared, and thermally sensitive applications, depending on the type of silica used (BK 7 or UV).
A three millimeter Ultrafast Laser Output Coupler Mirror is another vital component of laser creation. Along with Prisms, an OC .20 mirror that is featured on Advanced Photonics' website is designed for laser creation in the 720 to 890 nanometer range. The OC .20 mirror is three millimeters thick and reflects at 88%, transmission of 12%.
As far as optical science work going on now and in the future, there still seems to be a lot of work left to be done. Optics are used in quantum physics and mechanics. Quantum cryptography is used to encrypt and decode messages or their keys in order to send and receive private information. Quantum mechanics are also continuing to study ions. Lastly, there is optics and photonics work being done in the medical, consumer electronics, and telecommunications industries.
The Optical Society of America (OSA) "promotes the generation, application, archiving and worldwide dissemination of knowledge in optics and photonics." The OSA Foundation was founded in 2002. The Foundation is a charitable organization that supports programs to teach science in developing and other needy countries. The OSA itself was founded in 1916 and is currently headquartered in Washington, D.C. "The mission of OSA is to promote the generation, application and archiving of knowledge in optics and photonics and to disseminate this knowledge worldwide." The headquarters is staffed by 125 employees and boasts 14,000 members in 81 countries around the world.
Lasers-Optics-USA/ UK. "A brief history of Optics." November 5, 1996. Copyright Web Science Resources. September 27, 2006. http://members.aol.com/WSRNet/D1/hist.htm
Microsoft Encarta. "Optics." Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia. Copyright 2006. Microsoft Corporation. September 27, 2006. http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761576625_3/Op tics.html#howtocite
Science & Engineering. "Optics and Photonics." Science & Engineering-UK. Science-engineering.net. September 27, 2006. http://www.science-engineering.net/optics_science. htm
American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. Definition of "Optics." Updated and Copyright 2005. Houghton Mifflin Company. Ask.com. Copyright 2006. IAC Search and Media. September 25, 2006. http://www.ask.com/reference/dictionary/ahdict/322 03/optics
Meller Optics. "Information" page. Meller Optics, Inc. Copyright 2006. September 25, 2006. http://www.melleroptics.com/shopping/materials.asp
Advanced Photonics. "Products > Optics." Copyright 2004. Advanced Photonics. September 25, 2006. http://www.advancedphotonicsindia.com/PRODUCTS/OPT ICS.ASP
www.osa.org. Deborah Herrin-Senior Director of Information Technology. Copyright 2006. Optical Society of America. September 25, 2006. http://www.osa.org/
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