Laboratory Optics: A practical guide to working in an optics lab

Peter Beyersdorf

July 2014 · Peter Beyersdorf

About this eBook

A multimedia interactive guide to developing practical skills for optics research.  Use as a class lab manual, an instructional tool or as an indispensable reference.

In concise, high-def videos, various skills and techniques are demonstrated and explained.  These cover topics for the novice, such as mounting and cleaning of optics, as well as for the more advanced learner, such as balanced detection, and lock-in amplifiers.

Various interactive widgets let you simulate the experience of aligning a laser beam to an optical system, aligning an interferometer to get fringes, or adjust a Fabry-Perot cavity while observing the mode spectrum.  Other tools help you quickly find the Gaussian beam parameters of your laser from measured beam radii, and to calculate the position of a lens or pair of lenses to mode match a laser to a cavity.   

Ratings and reviews

It is very helpful for training beginners in an optics lab. Especially those labs who set up their own optical systems. The videos inside this ebook provide clear step-by-step procedures of many fundamental but important optical setup skills. There are also interactive tools to practice the skills inside the ebook. Whit those videos and interactive tools, I don't need to prepare all kinds of devices when training my lab members. I can simply play the videos and do demonstrations on the interactive tools. Many thanks to Dr. Beyersdorf for creating this amazing interactive ebook!

This ebook is very educational and most of all very practical for anyone performing laboratory experiments with optics. I love the visualizations that help me understand the techniques, since I can easily change different parameters and instantly see what happens with the set up. The author did a great job explaining the concepts that are very hard to understand. The text is easy to read and the ebook format allows the reader to "play" with the simulations. This edition will definitely be my primary tool/reference for my optics experiments.

I just finished this lab manual resource and highly recommend it! Transitions from basic concepts to more advanced in a structured manner. The videos in each section really bring the concepts to life and help the reader visualize and understand the material. The video tutorials were my favorite part; catered to my learning style.

About the author

Dr. Beyersdorf is an associate professor of physics at San Jose state University.   He draws on years of experience in research and teaching of experimental optics to provide practical tutorials on some of the most common (and often misunderstood) tasks involved in typical optics experiments.