book?

[Mark-T]

Hi,

I seek recommendations for an introductory text on optics.
I have an engineering degree, but no coursework in the
subject. I'm unafraid of math, and studied some electromagnetic
theory, though I'm rusty there.

I looked at the Born & Wolf monster, but that's way
too dense, intended for the full time student.

Also, I'm confused on ray vs. geometric vs. Fourier vs. whatever optics.

Thx,


Mark

 

[George Herold]

On Thursday, July 2, 2015 at 5:43:01 PM UTC-4, Mark-T wrote:

Hi,

I seek recommendations for an introductory text on optics.
I have an engineering degree, but no coursework in the
subject. I'm unafraid of math, and studied some electromagnetic
theory, though I'm rusty there.

I looked at the Born & Wolf monster, but that's way
too dense, intended for the full time student.

Also, I'm confused on ray vs. geometric vs. Fourier vs. whatever optics.

Thx,


Mark

Hecht is a decent intro text, there have been several editions,
so pick up the 2nd or 3rd ed. for a few bucks.

What are you doing? (optics wise)

George H.

 

[Mark-T]

On July 2, George Herold wrote:

I seek recommendations for an introductory text on optics.
I have an engineering degree, but no coursework in the
subject. I'm unafraid of math, and studied some electromagnetic
theory, though I'm rusty there.

Also, I'm confused on ray vs. geometric vs. Fourier vs. whatever optics.

Hecht is a decent intro text, there have been several editions,
so pick up the 2nd or 3rd ed. for a few bucks.
What are you doing? (optics wise)

Working on industrial machinery, which involves some fiber optics,
lamp controls, electric-optic communications.

I sit in meetings listening to discussions of Fresnel lenses
and Bragg angles,. huh? But also, as a science geek, er I
mean student, I'd like to learn more. Realistically, I'll never be a pro -

Mark

 

[George Herold]

On Thursday, July 2, 2015 at 9:57:36 PM UTC-4, Mark-T wrote:

On July 2, George Herold wrote:
I seek recommendations for an introductory text on optics.
I have an engineering degree, but no coursework in the
subject. I'm unafraid of math, and studied some electromagnetic
theory, though I'm rusty there.

Also, I'm confused on ray vs. geometric vs. Fourier vs. whatever optics.

Hecht is a decent intro text, there have been several editions,
so pick up the 2nd or 3rd ed. for a few bucks.
What are you doing? (optics wise)

Working on industrial machinery, which involves some fiber optics,
lamp controls, electric-optic communications.

I sit in meetings listening to discussions of Fresnel lenses
and Bragg angles,. huh? But also, as a science geek, er I
mean student, I'd like to learn more. Realistically, I'll never be a pro -

Mark

Well Hecht will be a decent start.
I sometimes follow Phil H's idea and just
read an intro text through like a novel,
(but skip sections if you feel it's not what you want.)
That gives you a decent over view of the field.
Then go back and dig deeper in the topics you need,
(do some of the problems at the end of the chapter.)

I was saddened the other day to walk into the
science and engineering library at my local Uni
and find that all the books were gone.
Study carrels, and computer terminals.
There is something to wandering the stacks,
finding the shelf that has some of the type
of book you want, and then browsing them
to find the ones you might like.

George H.

 

On Thu, 2 Jul 2015 14:42:57 -0700 (PDT), Mark-T <mark-t2@lycos.com>
wrote:

Hi,

I seek recommendations for an introductory text on optics.
I have an engineering degree, but no coursework in the
subject. I'm unafraid of math, and studied some electromagnetic
theory, though I'm rusty there.

I looked at the Born & Wolf monster, but that's way
too dense, intended for the full time student.

Also, I'm confused on ray vs. geometric vs. Fourier vs. whatever optics.

Thx,


Mark

Greetings Mark,
When I got interested in optics years ago a book I found very
interesting that gave me a good "seat of the pants" feel about optics
is an Edmunds publication called "Popular Optics". The book is a
compilation of several short publications about optics and optical
systems. There is ray tracing and math and how to build a collimator,
telescopes both refractor and reflector, how magnification works in
general, spherical abberation, and so on. The book has the math in it
to calculate the path of the light surface by surface and by the
changing indexes (indices?) of refraction as well as the simple Thin
Lens formulas for ray tracing. After reading this book through a
couple times I have built optical systems for my self that worked the
way I thought they would. I have since read other stuff that was way
easier to understand because I had already a good feel about basic
optics. For someone like you I think the book will be a fast read and
give you a pretty good foundation to start on.
Cheers,
Eric

 

[John Larkin]

On Thu, 2 Jul 2015 14:42:57 -0700 (PDT), Mark-T <mark-t2@lycos.com>
wrote:

Hi,

I seek recommendations for an introductory text on optics.
I have an engineering degree, but no coursework in the
subject. I'm unafraid of math, and studied some electromagnetic
theory, though I'm rusty there.

I looked at the Born & Wolf monster, but that's way
too dense, intended for the full time student.

Also, I'm confused on ray vs. geometric vs. Fourier vs. whatever optics.

Thx,


Mark

Phil Hobbs' electro-optics book is great. Some of the later chapters
get into the electronics issues, which optics texts generally don't.

He's mainly concerned with high-end signal processing, not easy stuff
like blasting 1s and 0s through a hundred feet of fiber.

People have cursed me for giving them the book, because reading it
stopped them from their usual activities.



--

John Larkin Highland Technology, Inc
picosecond timing laser drivers and controllers

jlarkin att highlandtechnology dott com
http://www.highlandtechnology.com