Optical Parametric Tunable, Generators: Powerful & Ultrafast

OPOs and OPAs offer a promising method for tuning wavelengths using ultrafast lasers. Piskarskas discusses the history, development, technical design challenges of, and outlook for, these devices.

by Algis P. Piskarskas

Test and Measurement: Spatial Profile, Power, Wavelength and Linewidth Measurement Computerizations Alternatives

Forrest discusses the trade-offs of stand-alone instruments versus integrated measurement systems for the measurement of beam power, spatial distribution, linewidth, and wavelength parameters. He also anticipates future trends in computerized instrumentation.

by Gary Forrest

Light Guide Fibers: Problems and Prospects

The authors discuss the new insights and instruments that allow glass researchers to understand, predict, and improve fiber behavior and lifetimes.

by Charles R. Kurkjian, Rolf A. Frantz, and Hakan H. Yuce

Get green: Fun with thin film interference

This article describes how to make your own monochromatic lamp for less than $25 and then gives you some fun experiments you can conduct with Newton rings and other thin film effects. For those with a higher budget, an improved design is described that can be made for about $85.

by Michael E. Knotts