Acoustic wave
Acoustic waves spectrally modulate supercontinuum light inside an acousto-optic tunable filter. The supercontinuum light interacts with resonating acoustic modes to produce 4-lobed orange, green and rainbow Schaefer-Bergmann diffraction patterns around the two spectrally modulated beams and undiffracted light. These optical patterns can quantitatively measure acoustic properties of crystals. [Winner 2016 After Image photo contest.]
—Stephanie Swartz
29 Nov 2016
White Light
A strip of LEDs creates white light by combing sets of red, green and blue LEDs placed together. When imaged through the glass sphere in the center, the red, green and blue caustics are imaged to slightly different locations, due to the small distances between each color LED. [Second Place 2016 After Image photo contest.]
—Page E. King
29 Nov 2016
Axicons
We normally use axicons on-axis configuration to generate Bessel beams for femtosecond laser micromachining. Due to the geometry of these conical lenses, refraction in the axicons produces interesting caustics. Playing with axicons' tilts and positions may turn these caustics into actual pieces of graphic art. [Third Place 2016 After Image photo contest.]
—Rémi Meyer
29 Nov 2016
Refraction & Reflection a CD
Water droplets on a compact disc refract light before they enter the polycarbonate layer. A flashlight's movements were captured with a fifteen second exposure time. [Honorable Mention 2016 After Image photo contest.]
—Nicholas A. Hall
29 Nov 2016
Entimus imperialis’ photonic polycrystal
Scales covering the elytra of the Brazilian diamond beetle display iridescent photonic polycrystals, due to light interference within the optical structure comprised in the scales. [Honorable Mention 2016 After Image photo contest.]
—Sébastien R. Mouchet
29 Nov 2016
Polarizing lenses of 3D glasses
The chiral corn-syrup molecules in the beaker twist the backlight’s horizontal polarization. 3-D glasses’ polarizing lenses reveal that blue light is rotated more than red. [Honorable Mention 2016 After Image photo contest.]
—Paul G. Kwiat
29 Nov 2016
Mouse Brain
Coronal view of 20-µm thick section of a mouse brain, taken in white light with a polychromatic polarization microscope. Colors reveal orientation of nerve cell molecules. [Honorable Mention 2016 After Image photo contest.]
—Michael Shribak
29 Nov 2016
Internal reflections
Top view image of a laser beam injected in the hyperbolic prism creating multiple internal reflections with self-similar properties.
—Alberto Tufaile & Adriana P. B. Tufaile
29 Nov 2016
Twirling LEDs
Newton's rotating disk but with RGB LEDs. Whites in places. Streaks due to white LEDs.
—Anand Asundi
29 Nov 2016
Mirror at the summit of Mauna Kea
Subaru Telescope's primary 8.2 m mirror at the summit of Mauna Kea.
—Danielle C. Doughty
29 Nov 2016
