Laser Theory and Applications
(3-0-0-3)
CMPE Degree: This course is Selected Elective for the CMPE degree.
EE Degree: This course is Selected Elective for the EE degree.
Lab Hours: 0 supervised lab hours and 0 unsupervised lab hours.
Technical Interest Groups / Course Categories: Threads / ECE Electives
Course Coordinator: Ali Adibi
Prerequisites: PHYS 2212 [min D]
Catalog Description
Provides an introduction to the theory and applications of laser principles and related instrumentation. Emphasis is on the fundamental principles underlying laser action. Crosslisted with PHYS 4751.Textbook(s)
Introduction to Lasers and Their ApplicationsCourse Outcomes
Analyze the propagation of an optical beam with an arbitrary polarization inside a free-space optical system with polarization-sensitive components.
Analyze three-level and four-leve laser systems through detailed calculation of the gain, population inversion, and cavity modes.
Analyze and design stable mirror-based cavities for achieving single-mode or multi-mode operation; analyze the longitudinal and transverse modes and their Gaussian beam profiles in a mirror-based cavity.
Analyze different classes of lasers (gas, liquid, solid-state, excimer, and seminconductor laser); also design a stable laser with a given set of specifications using simple building blocks (a variety of gain media, a series of mirrors, filters, switches, and modulators).
Design (conceptually using fundamental building blocks) active and passive Q-switched and mode-locked pulsed lasers and analyze their pulse properties .
Analyze, explain, and compare in detail the data sheets of different commercial laser systems.
Design simple experiments to measure the fundamental properties of a laser (especially its divergence angle, coherence length, and beam profile).
Analyze different classes of optical detectors (photomultiplier tubes and semiconductor detectors).
Analyze an optical communication system formed through building blocks (laser source, modulator, fiber, detector) in terms of the signal to noise rato and the bit error rate for simple modulation schemes.
Analyze and design Fabry-Perot-based filters and spectrometrs.
Strategic Performance Indicators (SPIs)
N/A
Topic List
- Introduction
- Properties of Laser light
- Wave motion
- Laws of Reflection and Refraction
- Monochromaticity
- Directionality and Brightness
- Interference and Coherence
- Polarization
- Gaussian Beams
- Introduction to Lasers
- Stimulated Emission
- Einstein Coefficients
- Lineshape
- Threshold and Steady State Conditions
- Two, Three, and Four Level Laser Systems
- Laser Dynamics
- Q-switching and Mode-locking
- Saturable Absorbers and Amplifiers
- Laser Examples
- Gas Lasers
- Excimer Lasers
- Doped Insulator Lasers
- Dye Lasers
- Semiconductor Lasers
- Detection and Characterization of Optical Radiation
- Thermal Detectors
- Quantum Detectors
- Measurement Techniques
- Optical Communication
- Fiber Optics
- Systems
- Power Applications
- Beam Focussing
- Material Processing
- Scanning Systems
- Holography