scispace - formally typeset
Search or ask a question

Showing papers in "Optical Engineering in 2017"


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The development of THz PCA technology through the last 30 years is reviewed, the key modalities of improving device performance are identified, and literature is reviewed to summarize the progress made in these areas.
Abstract: Photoconductive antennas (PCAs) have been extensively utilized for the generation and detection of both pulsed broadband and single frequency continuous wave terahertz (THz) band radiation. These devices form the basis of many THz imaging and spectroscopy systems, which have demonstrated promising applications in various industries and research fields. The development of THz PCA technology through the last 30 years is reviewed. The key modalities of improving device performance are identified, and literature is reviewed to summarize the progress made in these areas. The goal of this review is to provide a collection of all relevant literature to bring researchers up to date on the current state and remaining challenges of THz PCA technology.

264 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A comprehensive review of the history and the state of the art of GaN-based electronic devices, including plasma heterostructure field-effect transistors, negative differential resistances, hetero-dimensional Schottky diodes, impact avalanche transit times, quantum-cascade lasers, high electron mobility transistors and tera field effect transistors together with their impact on the future of terahertz imaging and spectroscopy systems is provided in this paper.
Abstract: GaN provides the highest electron saturation velocity, breakdown voltage, operation temperature, and thus the highest combined frequency-power performance among commonly used semiconductors. The industrial need for compact, economical, high-resolution, and high-power terahertz (THz) imaging and spectroscopy systems are promoting the utilization of GaN for implementing the next generation of THz systems. As it is reviewed, the mentioned characteristics of GaN together with its capabilities of providing high two-dimensional election densities and large longitudinal optical phonon of ∼90 meV make it one of the most promising semiconductor materials for the future of the THz emitters, detectors, mixers, and frequency multiplicators. GaN-based devices have shown capabilities of operation in the upper THz frequency band of 5 to 12 THz with relatively high photon densities in room temperature. As a result, THz imaging and spectroscopy systems with high resolution and deep depth of penetration can be realized through utilizing GaN-based devices. A comprehensive review of the history and the state of the art of GaN-based electronic devices, including plasma heterostructure field-effect transistors, negative differential resistances, hetero-dimensional Schottky diodes, impact avalanche transit times, quantum-cascade lasers, high electron mobility transistors, Gunn diodes, and tera field-effect transistors together with their impact on the future of THz imaging and spectroscopy systems is provided.

78 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a cost-effective lidar instrument design is proposed based on high-repetition-rate diode-pumped solid-state lasers and high-gain, low-excess-noise InGaAs avalanche photodiode receivers and focal plane arrays.
Abstract: Newly emerging accident-reducing, driver-assistance, and autonomous-navigation technology for automobiles is based on real-time three-dimensional mapping and object detection, tracking, and classification using lidar sensors. Yet, the lack of lidar sensors suitable for meeting application requirements appreciably limits practical widespread use of lidar in trucking, public livery, consumer cars, and fleet automobiles. To address this need, a system-engineering perspective to eyesafe lidar-system design for high-level advanced driver-assistance sensor systems and a design trade study including 1.5 - μ m spot-scanned, line-scanned, and flash-lidar systems are presented. A cost-effective lidar instrument design is then proposed based on high-repetition-rate diode-pumped solid-state lasers and high-gain, low-excess-noise InGaAs avalanche photodiode receivers and focal plane arrays. Using probabilistic receiver-operating-characteristic analysis, derived from measured component performance, a compact lidar system is proposed that is capable of 220 m ranging with 5-cm accuracy, which can be readily scaled to a 360-deg field of regard.

63 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A detailed review of the different types of optical freeform surface representation techniques and their applications and discuss their properties and differences is presented.
Abstract: Modern advanced manufacturing and testing technologies allow the application of freeform optical elements. Compared with traditional spherical surfaces, an optical freeform surface has more degrees of freedom in optical design and provides substantially improved imaging performance. In freeform optics, the representation technique of a freeform surface has been a fundamental and key research topic in recent years. Moreover, it has a close relationship with other aspects of the design, manufacturing, testing, and application of optical freeform surfaces. Improvements in freeform surface representation techniques will make a significant contribution to the further development of freeform optics. We present a detailed review of the different types of optical freeform surface representation techniques and their applications and discuss their properties and differences. Additionally, we analyze the future trends of optical freeform surface representation techniques.

63 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: I think this tool can be used effectively to study optical anisoplanatic turbulence and to aid in the development of image restoration methods.
Abstract: We present a numerical wave propagation method for simulating imaging of an extended scene under anisoplanatic conditions. While isoplanatic simulation is relatively common, few tools are specifically designed for simulating the imaging of extended scenes under anisoplanatic conditions. We provide a complete description of the proposed simulation tool, including the wave propagation method used. Our approach computes an array of point spread functions (PSFs) for a two-dimensional grid on the object plane. The PSFs are then used in a spatially varying weighted sum operation, with an ideal image, to produce a simulated image with realistic optical turbulence degradation. The degradation includes spatially varying warping and blurring. To produce the PSF array, we generate a series of extended phase screens. Simulated point sources are numerically propagated from an array of positions on the object plane, through the phase screens, and ultimately to the focal plane of the simulated camera. Note that the optical path for each PSF will be different, and thus, pass through a different portion of the extended phase screens. These different paths give rise to a spatially varying PSF to produce anisoplanatic effects. We use a method for defining the individual phase screen statistics that we have not seen used in previous anisoplanatic simulations. We also present a validation analysis. In particular, we compare simulated outputs with the theoretical anisoplanatic tilt correlation and a derived differential tilt variance statistic. This is in addition to comparing the long- and short-exposure PSFs and isoplanatic angle. We believe this analysis represents the most thorough validation of an anisoplanatic simulation to date. The current work is also unique that we simulate and validate both constant and varying Cn2(z) profiles. Furthermore, we simulate sequences with both temporally independent and temporally correlated turbulence effects. Temporal correlation is introduced by generating even larger extended phase screens and translating this block of screens in front of the propagation area. Our validation analysis shows an excellent match between the simulation statistics and the theoretical predictions. Thus, we think this tool can be used effectively to study optical anisoplanatic turbulence and to aid in the development of image restoration methods.

61 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present an experimental investigation of the use of coherence scanning interferometry (CSI) for measurement of AM surfaces, including high dynamic range for light level and adjustable data acquisition rates for noise reduction.
Abstract: Surface topography measurement for metal additive manufacturing (AM) is a challenging task for contact and non-contact methods. In this paper, we present an experimental investigation of the use of coherence scanning interferometry (CSI) for measurement of AM surfaces. Our approach takes advantage of recent technical enhancements in CSI, including high dynamic range for light level and adjustable data acquisition rates for noise reduction. The investigation covers several typical metal AM surfaces made from different materials and AM processes. Recommendations for measurement optimisation balance three aspects: data coverage, measurement area and measurement time. This study also presents insight into areas of interest for future rigorous examination, such as measurement noise and further development of guidelines for the measurement of metal AM surfaces.

59 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The reconstruction of depth and intensity profiles from data acquired using a custom-designed time-of-flight scanning transceiver based on the time-correlated single-photon counting technique achieves significant improvements in image quality for multidepth scenarios and for reduced acquisition times.
Abstract: We investigate the reconstruction of depth and intensity profiles from data acquired using a custom-designed time-of-flight scanning transceiver based on the time-correlated single-photon counting technique. The system had an operational wavelength of 1550 nm and used a Peltier-cooled InGaAs/InP single-photon avalanche diode detector. Measurements were made of human figures, in plain view and obscured by camouflage netting, from a stand-off distance of 230 m in daylight using only submilliwatt average optical powers. These measurements were analyzed using a pixelwise cross correlation approach and compared to analysis using a bespoke algorithm designed for the restoration of multilayered three-dimensional light detection and ranging images. This algorithm is based on the optimization of a convex cost function composed of a data fidelity term and regularization terms, and the results obtained show that it achieves significant improvements in image quality for multidepth scenarios and for reduced acquisition times.

57 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Laser feedback interferometry as mentioned in this paper is a technique that applies a laser reflected from an external surface, which has features including simple structure, easy alignment, and high sensitivity, and has great potential to be further exploited and applied.
Abstract: The progress on laser feedback interferometry technology is reviewed. Laser feedback interferometry is a demonstration of interferometry technology applying a laser reflected from an external surface, which has features including simple structure, easy alignment, and high sensitivity. Theoretical analysis including the Lang–Kobayashi model and three-mirror model are conducted to explain the modulation of the laser output properties under the feedback effect. In particular, the effect of frequency and polarization shift feedback effects are analyzed and discussed. Various applications on various types of lasers are introduced. The application fields range from metrology, to physical quantities, to laser parameters and other applications. The typical applications of laser feedback technology in industrial and research fields are discussed. Laser feedback interferometry has great potential to be further exploited and applied.

52 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The employed algorithm is emerged as an effective and practical method for indoor localization and outperform other existing indoor wireless localization approaches.
Abstract: An indoor positioning algorithm based on visible light communication (VLC) is presented. This algorithm is used to calculate a three-dimensional (3-D) coordinate of an indoor optical wireless environment, which includes sufficient orders of multipath reflections from reflecting surfaces of the room. Leveraging the global optimization ability of the genetic algorithm (GA), an innovative framework for 3-D position estimation based on a modified genetic algorithm is proposed. Unlike other techniques using VLC for positioning, the proposed system can achieve indoor 3-D localization without making assumptions about the height or acquiring the orientation angle of the mobile terminal. Simulation results show that an average localization error of less than 1.02 cm can be achieved. In addition, in most VLC-positioning systems, the effect of reflection is always neglected and its performance is limited by reflection, which makes the results not so accurate for a real scenario and the positioning errors at the corners are relatively larger than other places. So, we take the first-order reflection into consideration and use artificial neural network to match the model of a nonlinear channel. The studies show that under the nonlinear matching of direct and reflected channels the average positioning errors of four corners decrease from 11.94 to 0.95 cm. The employed algorithm is emerged as an effective and practical method for indoor localization and outperform other existing indoor wireless localization approaches.

41 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a photonic crystal fiber with near-zero flattened dispersion, ultralower effective material loss (EML), and negligible confinement loss for a broad spectrum range was demonstrated.
Abstract: We demonstrate a photonic crystal fiber with near-zero flattened dispersion, ultralower effective material loss (EML), and negligible confinement loss for a broad spectrum range. The use of cyclic olefin copolymer Topas with improved core confinement significantly reduces the loss characteristics and the use of higher air filling fraction results in flat dispersion characteristics. The properties such as dispersion, EML, confinement loss, modal effective area, and single-mode operation of the fiber have been investigated using the full-vector finite element method with the perfectly matched layer absorbing boundary conditions. The practical implementation of the proposed fiber is achievable with existing fabrication techniques as only circular-shaped air holes have been used to design the waveguide. Thus, it is expected that the proposed terahertz waveguide can potentially be used for flexible and efficient transmission of terahertz waves.

40 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: An approach employing ultrafast laser hybrid subtractive-additive microfabrication, which combines ablation, three-dimensional nanolithography, and welding, is proposed for the realization of a lab-on-chip (LOC) device as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: An approach employing ultrafast laser hybrid subtractive-additive microfabrication, which combines ablation, three-dimensional nanolithography, and welding, is proposed for the realization of a lab-on-chip (LOC) device. A single amplified Yb:KGW femtosecond (fs)-pulsed laser source is shown to be suitable for fabricating microgrooves in glass slabs, polymerization of fine-meshes microfilter out of hybrid organic–inorganic photopolymer SZ2080 inside them, and, finally, sealing the whole chip with cover glass into a single monolithic piece. The created microfluidic device proved its particle sorting function by separating 1- and 10-μm polystyrene spheres in an aqueous mixture. All together, this proves that laser microfabrication based on a single amplified fs laser source is a flexible and versatile approach for the hybrid subtractive-additive manufacturing of functional mesoscale multimaterial LOC devices.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors demonstrate multi-heterodyne spectroscopy (MHS) using interband cascade lasers, which combines broadband spectral coverage with high spectral resolution and energy-efficient operation.
Abstract: While midinfrared radiation can be used to identify and quantify numerous chemical species, contemporary broadband midinfrared spectroscopic systems are often hindered by large footprints, moving parts, and high power consumption. In this work, we demonstrate multiheterodyne spectroscopy (MHS) using interband cascade lasers, which combines broadband spectral coverage with high spectral resolution and energy-efficient operation. The lasers generate up to 30 mW of continuous-wave optical power while consuming <0.5 W of electrical power. A computational phase and timing correction algorithm is used to obtain kHz linewidths of the multiheterodyne beat notes and up to 30 dB improvement in signal-to-noise ratio. The versatility of the multiheterodyne technique is demonstrated by performing both rapidly swept absorption and dispersion spectroscopic assessments of low-pressure ethylene (C2H4) acquired by extracting a single beat note from the multiheterodyne signal, as well as broadband MHS of methane (CH4) acquired with all available beat notes with microsecond temporal resolution and an instantaneous optical bandwidth of ∼240 GHz. The technology shows excellent potential for portable and high-resolution solid-state spectroscopic chemical sensors operating in the midinfrared.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a photonic crystal fiber (PCF) refractive index sensor based on the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect operating in the telecommunication wavelengths is presented.
Abstract: This paper presents a highly sensitive photonic crystal fiber (PCF) refractive index sensor based on the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect operating in the telecommunication wavelengths. Gold is used as the plasmonic material due to its chemical stability and titanium dioxide (TiO2) is used to shift the resonance wavelength in the telecommunication bands. Both materials are deposited sequentially on the PCF surface, which is comparatively easy to fabricate. Numerical investigations show that the proposed sensor exhibits very high wavelength sensitivity of 10,800 nm/RIU and amplitude sensitivity of 514 RIU−1 in the sensing range between 1.46 and 1.48. Moreover, it exhibits maximum sensor resolution of 9.25×10−6 RIU and high linearity over a wide sensing range. The proposed sensor can be practically realized due to its simple and straightforward structure.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The InGaAs GMAPD and the HgCdTe LMAPD cameras required the least energy to 3-D map both scenarios for bare earth, with the GMAPD taking slightly less energy.
Abstract: Three lidar receiver technologies using the total laser energy required to perform a set of imaging tasks are compared. The tasks are combinations of two collection types (3-D mapping from near and far), two scene types (foliated and unobscured), and three types of data products (geometry only, geometry plus 3-bit intensity, and geometry plus 6-bit intensity). The receiver technologies are based on Geiger mode avalanche photodiodes (GMAPD), linear mode avalanche photodiodes (LMAPD), and optical time-of-flight lidar, which combine rapid polarization rotation of the image and dual low-bandwidth cameras to generate a 3-D image. We choose scenarios to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of various lidars. We consider HgCdTe and InGaAs variations of LMAPD cameras. The InGaAs GMAPD and the HgCdTe LMAPD cameras required the least energy to 3-D map both scenarios for bare earth, with the GMAPD taking slightly less energy. We comment on the strengths and weaknesses of each receiver technology. Six bits of intensity gray levels requires substantial energy using all camera modalities.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a defect inspection system that uses a dual lighting structure to distinguish uneven defects and color changes by surface noise is proposed, and an image processing algorithm that can be used to detect defects is presented.
Abstract: There are several types of steel products, such as wire rods, cold-rolled coils, hot-rolled coils, thick plates, and electrical sheets. Surface stains on cold-rolled coils are considered defects. However, surface stains on thick plates are not considered defects. A conventional optical structure is composed of a camera and lighting module. A defect inspection system that uses a dual lighting structure to distinguish uneven defects and color changes by surface noise is proposed. In addition, an image processing algorithm that can be used to detect defects is presented in this paper. The algorithm consists of a Gabor filter that detects the switching pattern and employs the binarization method to extract the shape of the defect. The optics module and detection algorithm optimized using a simulator were installed at a real plant, and the experimental results conducted on thick steel plate images obtained from the steel production line show the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the effect of displacement currents due to dielectric relaxation of majority carriers in the charge-neutral region of a semiconductor photodiode is discussed and a phenomenological expression for the response time that accounts for the displacement current effects is proposed and used to compare with the experimental results.
Abstract: The effect of displacement currents due to dielectric relaxation of majority carriers in the charge-neutral region of a semiconductor photodiode is discussed. The dielectric relaxation is often neglected when treating the response time of photodiodes. We show that this component may dominate the slow response of not fully depleted photodiodes and has to be taken into account for correct analysis of silicon photodiode response to a brief laser pulse. A phenomenological expression for the photodiode response time that accounts for the displacement current effects is proposed and used to compare with the experimental results.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a low-loss microstructure fiber is numerically investigated for convenient transmission of polarization maintaining terahertz (THz) waves, where dual-hole units (DHUs) are used inside the core of the kagome lattice micro-structure to achieve high birefringence and low effective material loss.
Abstract: A low-loss microstructure fiber is numerically investigated for convenient transmission of polarization maintaining terahertz (THz) waves. The dual-hole units (DHUs) are used inside the core of the kagome lattice microstructure to achieve high birefringence and low effective material loss (EML). It is demonstrated that by rotating the axis of orientation of the DHUs, it is possible to obtain low EML of 0.052 cm−1, low confinement loss of 0.01 cm−1, and high birefringence of 0.0354 at 0.85 THz. It is also reported that the transmission properties of the proposed microstructure fiber are varied with rotation angle, core diameter, and operating frequencies. Other guiding characteristics, such as single-mode propagation, power fraction, and dispersion, are also discussed thoroughly.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The proposed block-matching and Wiener filtering approach to atmospheric turbulence mitigation for long-range imaging of extended scenes has excellent performance in comparison with state-of-the-art benchmark methods in this study.
Abstract: We present a block-matching and Wiener filtering approach to atmospheric turbulence mitigation for long-range imaging of extended scenes. We evaluate the proposed method, along with some benchmark methods, using simulated and real-image sequences. The simulated data are generated with a simulation tool developed by one of the authors. These data provide objective truth and allow for quantitative error analysis. The proposed turbulence mitigation method takes a sequence of short-exposure frames of a static scene and outputs a single restored image. A block-matching registration algorithm is used to provide geometric correction for each of the individual input frames. The registered frames are then averaged, and the average image is processed with a Wiener filter to provide deconvolution. An important aspect of the proposed method lies in how we model the degradation point spread function (PSF) for the purposes of Wiener filtering. We use a parametric model that takes into account the level of geometric correction achieved during image registration. This is unlike any method we are aware of in the literature. By matching the PSF to the level of registration in this way, the Wiener filter is able to fully exploit the reduced blurring achieved by registration. We also describe a method for estimating the atmospheric coherence diameter (or Fried parameter) from the estimated motion vectors. We provide a detailed performance analysis that illustrates how the key tuning parameters impact system performance. The proposed method is relatively simple computationally, yet it has excellent performance in comparison with state-of-the-art benchmark methods in our study.

Journal ArticleDOI
Abstract: X-ray fluorescence computed tomography (XFCT) was performed on a high-intensity synchrotron radiation source or a pencil beam with a long exposure time due to the low emission and detection efficiency of x-ray fluorescence photons. For the first time, the feasibility and experimental results of a full-field fan-beam XFCT with a photon-counting detector array are presented. This full-field fan-beam XFCT consists of a conventional low-intensity x-ray tube, an energy-sensitive photon-counting detector array, and a tungsten pinhole collimator. A phantom containing gadolinium solution (Kα, 42.74 keV) was scanned for 30 min using a polychromatic x-ray fan beam with a third-generation computed tomography (CT) geometry. After scattering and attenuation corrections, experimental results showed that XFCT had better accuracy and performance than spectral CT. Full-field XFCT is a promising modality for biomedical imaging of exogenous molecular probes containing nanoparticles of high atomic number.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Experimental results prove that the proposed image encryption technique using deoxyribonucleic acid operations and chaotic map is secure enough and can resist various attacks.
Abstract: An image encryption technique has been proposed using deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) operations and chaotic map in this scheme. First, initial conditions of row encryption and column encryption are calculated. Then, a two-dimensional sine iterative chaotic map with infinite collapse (ICMIC) modulation map (2D-SIMM) is adopted to produce chaotic sequences. Extended exclusive OR (XOR) is executed to enhance security. A mask matrix is produced by 2D-SIMM. It performs XOR operation with the DNA-encoded matrix. Finally, the revised DNA-encoded matrix is performed two-by-two DNA complementary rules and executed DNA decoding to obtain the cipher image. Experiment results prove that the proposed scheme is secure enough and can resist various attacks.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The experimental results show promising performance with an acceptable average classification rate and strong robustness on yarn-dyed fabric defect classification.
Abstract: Considering that manual inspection of the yarn-dyed fabric can be time consuming and inefficient, we propose a yarn-dyed fabric defect classification method by using a convolutional neural network (CNN) based on a modified AlexNet CNN shows powerful ability in performing feature extraction and fusion by simulating the learning mechanism of human brain The local response normalization layers in AlexNet are replaced by the batch normalization layers, which can enhance both the computational efficiency and classification accuracy In the training process of the network, the characteristics of the defect are extracted step by step and the essential features of the image can be obtained from the fusion of the edge details with several convolution operations Then the max-pooling layers, the dropout layers, and the fully connected layers are employed in the classification model to reduce the computation cost and extract more precise features of the defective fabric Finally, the results of the defect classification are predicted by the softmax function The experimental results show promising performance with an acceptable average classification rate and strong robustness on yarn-dyed fabric defect classification

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This work focuses on simultaneous transmission of four independent OFDM-based channels by mode-division multiplexing of Laguerre– Gaussian mode with vortex lens and Hermite–Gaussian mode to realize a total transmission of 80 Gbps to 160 GHz data over 50-km free-space optical link.
Abstract: In an attempt to meet the goal of distributing millimeter-wave (mm-wave) signals, recent years have witnessed significant relevance being given to combining radio frequency with optical fiber technologies. The future of radio-over-free-space-optics technology aims to build a universal platform for distributing millimeter waves for wireless local area networks without using expensive optical fibers. This work is focused on simultaneous transmission of four independent OFDM-based channels, each carrying 20 Gbps to 40 GHz data, by mode-division multiplexing of Laguerre–Gaussian mode with vortex lens and Hermite–Gaussian mode to realize a total transmission of 80 Gbps to 160 GHz data over 50-km free-space optical link. Moreover, the performance of the proposed system is also evaluated under the influence of various atmospheric turbulences, such as light fog, thin fog, and thick fog.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a two-dimensional photonic crystal (PC) square lattice structure was used to design a channel drop filter (CDF) using a PC ring resonator structure because of its better response.
Abstract: We study the two-dimensional photonic crystal (PC) square lattice structure to design a channel drop filter. The channel drop filter (CDF) is designed using a PC ring resonator structure because of its better response. The variation in the shape of scatterer rods causes the shift in resonant wavelength and also shows an improvement in quality factor as well as dropping efficiency. The dropping efficiency is improved from 92.7% to 99.5% for a particular wavelength at 1531 nm, which is especially used in telecommunication. The designed CDF structure is useful for coarse wavelength division multiplexer. The size of the device is very small, so these devices can play an important role in optical communication networks and photonic integrated circuits.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The results indicate performance of 3D printed optics that could be manufactured with surface roughness comparable to that of injection molded lenses (Ra < 20 nm), and 3D printing components' RMS wavefront error was comparable to glass lenses.
Abstract: We present an analysis of the shape, surface quality, and imaging capabilities of custom 3D printed lenses. 3D printing technology enables lens prototypes to be fabricated without restrictions on surface geometry. Thus, spherical, aspherical and rotationally non-symmetric lenses can be manufactured in an integrated production process. This technique serves as a noteworthy alternative to multistage, labor-intensive, abrasive processes such as grinding, polishing and diamond turning. Here, we evaluate the quality of lenses fabricated by Luxexcel using patented Printoptical© technology that is based on an inkjet printing technique by comparing them to lenses made with traditional glass processing technologies (grinding, polishing etc.). The surface geometry and roughness of the lenses were evaluated using white-light and Fizeau interferometers. We have compared peak-to-valley wavefront deviation, root-mean-squared wavefront error, radii of curvature and the arithmetic average of the roughness profile (Ra) of plastic and glass lenses. Additionally, the imaging performance of selected pairs of lenses was tested using 1951 USAF resolution target. The results indicate performance of 3D printed optics that could be manufactured with surface roughness comparable to that of injection molded lenses (Ra < 20 nm). The RMS wavefront error of 3D printed prototypes was at a minimum 18.8 times larger than equivalent glass prototypes for a lens with a 12.7 mm clear aperture, but when measured within 63% of its clear aperture, 3D printed components' RMS wavefront error was comparable to glass lenses.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This study proposes a real-time online absolute pose steering control method for an industrial robot based on six degrees of freedom laser tracking measurement, which adopts comprehensive compensation and correction of differential movement variables.
Abstract: In-situ intelligent manufacturing for large-volume equipment requires industrial robots with absolute high-accuracy positioning and orientation steering control. Conventional robots mainly employ an offline calibration technology to identify and compensate key robotic parameters. However, the dynamic and static parameters of a robot change nonlinearly. It is not possible to acquire a robot’s actual parameters and control the absolute pose of the robot with a high accuracy within a large workspace by offline calibration in real-time. This study proposes a real-time online absolute pose steering control method for an industrial robot based on six degrees of freedom laser tracking measurement, which adopts comprehensive compensation and correction of differential movement variables. First, the pose steering control system and robot kinematics error model are constructed, and then the pose error compensation mechanism and algorithm are introduced in detail. By accurately achieving the position and orientation of the robot end-tool, mapping the computed Jacobian matrix of the joint variable and correcting the joint variable, the real-time online absolute pose compensation for an industrial robot is accurately implemented in simulations and experimental tests. The average positioning error is 0.048 mm and orientation accuracy is better than 0.01 deg. The results demonstrate that the proposed method is feasible, and the online absolute accuracy of a robot is sufficiently enhanced.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: An integrated scheme, which combines the Fourier–Mellin transform-based cross correlation (FMT-CC) for seed point initiation with a reliability-guided displacement tracking (RGDT) strategy for the remaining points, is proposed to provide accurate initial guess for DIC calculation, even in the presence of large rotations.
Abstract: The state-of-the-art digital image correlation (DIC) method using iterative spatial-domain cross correlation, e.g., the inverse-compositional Gauss–Newton algorithm, for full-field displacement mapping requires an initial guess of deformation, which should be sufficiently close to the true value to ensure a rapid and accurate convergence. Although various initial guess approaches have been proposed, automated, robust, and fast initial guess remains to be a challenging task, especially when large rotation occurs to the deformed images. An integrated scheme, which combines the Fourier–Mellin transform-based cross correlation (FMT-CC) for seed point initiation with a reliability-guided displacement tracking (RGDT) strategy for the remaining points, is proposed to provide accurate initial guess for DIC calculation, even in the presence of large rotations. By using FMT-CC algorithm, the initial guess of the seed point can be automatically and accurately determined between pairs of interrogation subsets with up to ±180 deg of rotation even in the presence of large translation. Then the initial guess of the rest of the calculation points can be accurately predicted by the robust RGDT scheme. The robustness and effectiveness of the present initial guess approach are verified by numerical simulation tests and real experiment.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the laser-induced damage threshold is determined by the single-shot method by increasing the pulse energy from pulse to pulse or in the case of continuous-wave (CW)-lasers, by increasing laser power.
Abstract: The continuous development of laser systems toward more compact and efficient devices constitutes an increasing threat to electro-optical imaging sensors, such as complementary metal–oxide–semiconductors (CMOS) and charge-coupled devices. These types of electronic sensors are used in day-to-day life but also in military or civil security applications. In camera systems dedicated to specific tasks, micro-optoelectromechanical systems, such as a digital micromirror device (DMD), are part of the optical setup. In such systems, the DMD can be located at an intermediate focal plane of the optics and it is also susceptible to laser damage. The goal of our work is to enhance the knowledge of damaging effects on such devices exposed to laser light. The experimental setup for the investigation of laser-induced damage is described in detail. As laser sources, both pulsed lasers and continuous-wave (CW)-lasers are used. The laser-induced damage threshold is determined by the single-shot method by increasing the pulse energy from pulse to pulse or in the case of CW-lasers, by increasing the laser power. Furthermore, we investigate the morphology of laser-induced damage patterns and the dependence of the number of destructive device elements on the laser pulse energy or laser power. In addition to the destruction of single pixels, we observe aftereffects, such as persistent dead columns or rows of pixels in the sensor image.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A line-scan continuous hand authentication system with the appearance of an operating rod, which is far more accurate than the state-of-the-art continuous authentication systems using other modalities.
Abstract: An increasing number of heavy machinery and vehicles have come into service, giving rise to a significant concern over protecting these high-security systems from misuse. Conventionally, authentication performed merely at the initial login may not be sufficient for detecting intruders throughout the operating session. To address this critical security flaw, a line-scan continuous hand authentication system with the appearance of an operating rod is proposed. Given that the operating rod is occupied throughout the operating period, it can be a possible solution for unobtrusively recording the personal characteristics for continuous monitoring. The ergonomics in the physiological and psychological aspects are fully considered. Under the shape constraints, a highly integrated line-scan sensor, a controller unit, and a gear motor with encoder are utilized. This system is suitable for both the desktop and embedded platforms with a universal serial bus interface. The volume of the proposed system is smaller than 15% of current multispectral area-based camera systems. Based on experiments on a database with 4000 images from 200 volunteers, a competitive equal error rate of 0.1179% is achieved, which is far more accurate than the state-of-the-art continuous authentication systems using other modalities.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the effect of upward decreasing, uniform, and upward increasing magnetic fields on the temperature and temperature profile of a wick stabilized micro diffusion flame is investigated experimentally by using digital speckle pattern interferometry (DSPI).
Abstract: The effect of upward decreasing, uniform, and upward increasing magnetic fields on the temperature and temperature profile of a wick stabilized micro diffusion flame is investigated experimentally by using digital speckle pattern interferometry (DSPI). DSPI fringe patterns have inherent speckle noise which leads to inaccuracies in the measurements. To extract data more accurately, the high frequency speckle noise in a DSPI fringe pattern is reduced by using the combination of median filter and Symlet wavelet filter. The optical phase is extracted from the filtered DSPI fringe pattern by using Hilbert transform. The obtained phase is used to calculate the refractive index and temperature distribution in a microflame created by a candle. Temperature in the micro diffusion flame was determined experimentally both in the absence and in the presence of upward decreasing, uniform, and upward increasing magnetic fields. The experimental results reveal that temperature is increased under the effect of uniform and upward decreasing magnetic fields in comparison to the temperature of the microflame without a magnetic field. This is in contrast to the normal diffusion flame, where under a uniform magnetic field, there was no effect on temperature. In the case of an upward increasing magnetic field, the temperature of the microflame decreased.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a full-duplex radio over fiber (RoF) link with the generation of a 64-GHz millimeter wave (mm-wave) is investigated, and a photonic generation method is introduced and examined.
Abstract: A full-duplex radio over fiber (RoF) link with the generation of a 64-GHz millimeter wave (mm-wave) is investigated. This system is proposed as a solution to cope with the demands of a multi-Gb/s data transmission in the fifth generation (5G) and beyond for small cell networks. Cost reduction and performance improvement are achieved by simplifying the mm-wave generation method with an RoF technique. High-frequency radio signals are considered challenging in the electrical generation domain; therefore, our photonic generation method is introduced and examined. RoF design is proposed for mm-wave generation using both phase modulation and the effect of stimulated Brillouin scattering in the optical fiber for the first time. RoF system with transmission rates of 5 Gb/s is successfully achieved. In our scheme, one laser source is utilized and a fiber Bragg grating is used for wavelength reuse for the uplink connection. Stable mm-wave RoF link is successfully achieved in up to a 100-km fiber link length with high quality carrier. Simulation results show a reduction in fiber nonlinearity effects and the mm-wave signal has low noise equal to −75 dBm. This study ensures a practical mm-wave RoF link, and it could be appropriate for small cell 5G networks by reducing the installation cost.