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Optoelectronics: DR Paul S. Spencer

This document contains information about an optoelectronics module including: - 20 lectures and 4 tutorials on the topic - Recommended textbooks on optical fiber communication systems and optoelectronics - A brief history of optical communication from ancient signaling methods to modern scientific discoveries - An overview of coherent and incoherent electromagnetic sources, including how the total power of each scales with the number of sources - An explanation of the Casimir effect where fluctuations in vacuum exert pressure on nearby objects, causing attraction at small distances relevant to microelectromechanical systems.

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Mathew Clewlow
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32 views6 pages

Optoelectronics: DR Paul S. Spencer

This document contains information about an optoelectronics module including: - 20 lectures and 4 tutorials on the topic - Recommended textbooks on optical fiber communication systems and optoelectronics - A brief history of optical communication from ancient signaling methods to modern scientific discoveries - An overview of coherent and incoherent electromagnetic sources, including how the total power of each scales with the number of sources - An explanation of the Casimir effect where fluctuations in vacuum exert pressure on nearby objects, causing attraction at small distances relevant to microelectromechanical systems.

Uploaded by

Mathew Clewlow
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
Download as ppt, pdf, or txt
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Optoelectronics

ICM2014

Dr Paul S. Spencer
Module consists of:
20 Lectures
4 Tutorials
Recommended text:
W.B. Jones Introduction To Optical Fibre Communication
Systems, Oxford Uni. Press.
J. Gower Optical Communication Systems, Prentice Hall.
J. Wilson & J.F.B.Hawkes Optoelectronics: An Introduction,
Prentice Hall.
( www.britneyspears.ac/lasers.htm)

Optical Communication
History: Long and Illustrious
Waving arms, Beacons
Coded Messages Flags, Flashing lights
Navigation Starlight
Time travel Age of the Universe, Space-Time

Science:
Descartes - corpuscular nature
Newton Dispersion, Snells Law
Huygens wave nature: Interference, Diffraction, Polarisation
Maxwells Equation
Einstein Photoelectric effect, Relativity, LASER
Planck Blackbody Radiation: Quantum Mechanics: QED
Technology:
Coherent Sources
Bandwidth
Compact, Robust and Cheap

Coherent Electro-Magnetic Sources


The total power, PT , of N coherent sources of equal amplitude
is equal to the power of a solitary source, P0 , multiplied N2 !!!!

PT P0 N 2
Examples: Lasers, Microwave (Masers) and Radio Sources.
Microwave oven.

Incoherent Electro-Magnetic Sources


The total power, PT , of N incoherent sources of equal
amplitude is equal to the power of a solitary source, P0 ,
multiplied N.

PT P0 N

Examples: Almost everything else, domestic and commercial


lighting, electric cookers and fires. Barbecues.
Strictly speaking no source is complete coherent or incoherent

Casimir Effect
It was the Dutch theoretical physicist Hendrik
Casimir (1909-2000) who first realized that when
two mirrors face each other in a vacuum,
fluctuations in the vacuum exert "radiation pressure"
on them. On average the external pressure (red
arrows) is greater than the internal pressure (green
arrows). Both mirrors are mutually attracted to each
other by what is termed the Casimir force.
The force F ~ A/d4, where A is the area of the
mirrors and d is the distance between them.
While the Casimir force is too small to be observed
for mirrors that are several metres apart, it can be
measured if the mirrors are within microns of each
other. For example, two mirrors with an area of 1
cm2 separated by a distance of 1 m have an
attractive Casimir force of about 10-7 N - roughly the
weight of a water droplet that is half a millimetre in
diameter. Although this force might appear small, at
distances below a micrometre the Casimir force
becomes the strongest force between two neutral
objects. Indeed at separations of 10 nm - about a
hundred times the typical size of an atom - the
Casimir effect produces the equivalent of 1
atmosphere of pressure.

The Casimir force, which is most noticeable


at submicron distances, and can affect
microelectromechanical systems, or MEMS.
(a) This MEMS device consists of a
polysilicon plate suspended by a
torsional rod only a few micrometres in
diameter. When a metallized sphere
(purple) approaches the plate, the
attractive Casimir force between the
two objects causes the plate to rotate
around the rod.
(b) An electron micrograph of the device
that shows the polysilicon plate.
(c) A close-up of the rod.

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