Related papers: The Simons Observatory: Modeling Optical Systemati…
Selene is the attempt to implement a new scheme for high-intensity specular reflectometry. Instead of a highly collimated beam one uses a convergent beam covering a large angular range. The angular resolution is then performed by a…
The Simons Observatory (SO) is a ground-based cosmic microwave background (CMB) survey experiment that consists of three 0.5 m small-aperture telescopes (SATs) and one 6 m large-aperture telescope (LAT), sited at an elevation of 5200 m in…
This paper investigates the effects that perturbations to an optical system, such as translations or rotations of the optical elements, have on the final location where a light ray strikes a detector. Symmetry arguments are employed to give…
The ultimate goal of the "Pi of the Sky" apparatus is observation of optical flashes of astronomical origin and other light sources variable on short timescales. We search mainly for optical emission of Gamma Ray Bursts, but also for…
One of the well-known problems of producing instruments for Extremely Large Telescopes is that their size (and hence cost) scales rapidly with telescope aperture. To try to break this relation alternative new technologies have been…
The emerging technology of large (~ 10,000 pixel) submillimeter-wave bolometer arrays presents a novel optical design problem---how can such arrays be fed by diffraction-limited telescope optics where the primary mirror is less than 100,000…
We explore the impact of different telescope apertures on the image simulation and deconvolution processes within the context of a synthetic star field. Using HCIPy and Python programming, we modelled six telescope apertures namely…
Near-future astronomical survey experiments, such as LSST, possess system requirements of unprecedented fidelity that span photometry, astrometry and shape transfer. Some of these requirements flow directly to the array of science imaging…
Many concepts of physical optics can be visually illustrated on a relatively simple optical setup in a table-top format, not requiring any very specific equipment. Diffraction, interferences, speckle, image formation, Fourier optics,…
We present a method to simulate deep sky images, including realistic galaxy morphologies and telescope characteristics. To achieve a wide diversity of simulated galaxy morphologies, we first use the shapelets formalism to parametrize the…
The structure of single atoms in real space is investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy. Very high resolution is possible by a dramatic reduction of the tip-sample distance. The instabilities which are normally encountered when using…
We present methods and results of the testing of an inexpensive home-made diffraction limited lens system, the design of which was proposed in a recent paper and which has since been used (with slight alterations) by several research…
We present total and specular reflectance measurements of various materials that are commonly (and uncommonly) used to provide baffling and/or to minimize the effect of stray light in optical systems. More specifically, we investigate the…
Optical simulators for the Ising model have demonstrated great promise for solving challenging problems in physics and beyond. Here, we develop a spatial optical simulator for a variety of classical statistical systems, including the clock,…
The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) project will conduct a ten year multi-band survey starting in 2022. Observing strategies for this survey are being actively investigated, and the science capabilities can be best forecasted on the…
Adaptive optics (AO) offers an opportunity to stabilize an image and maximize the spatial resolution achievable by ground based telescopes by removing the distortions due to the atmosphere. Typically, the deformable mirror in an AO system…
In this paper we analyze the image formation problem for undulator radiation through an optical system, accounting for the influence of the electron beam emittance. On the one hand, image formation with Synchrotron Radiation is governed by…
Here we describe the implementation and calibration of a streaked visible spectrometer (SVS) for optical pyrometry and emission/absorption spectroscopy on light gas gun platforms in the UC Davis Shock Compression Laboratory. The diagnostic…
We describe several extensions to TIM, a raytracing program for ray-optics research. These include relativistic raytracing; simulation of the external appearance of Eaton lenses, Luneburg lenses and generalized focusing gradient-index…
We propose a methodology to measure the mechanical properties of membranes from their fluctuations and apply this to optical microscopy measurements of giant unilamellar vesicles of lipids. We analyze the effect of the projection of thermal…