4 ECTS credits
110 h study time
Offer 1 with catalog number 4017310DNR for all students in the 1st semester at a (D) Master - preliminary level.
In this course you will be [1] introduced into the field of photonics by looking at its history, studying its applications and analyzing the impact of photonics technology on todays economy and society. This course will teach you about [2] the interaction of light with matter (i.e. the emission and absorption of light by atoms, dispersion, scattering & interference of light, and more generally propagation of light through dielectrics and light in metals), [3] the propagation of light (i.e. reflection, refraction, total internal reflection, evanescent waves, frustrated total internal reflection, Fermat's principle), [4] geometrical optics (i.e. lenses & lens fabrication), [5] lasers (i.e. Einstein's theory of light-matter interaction, essential elements of a laser, characteristics of laser light, lasertypes & parameters) and [6] photovoltaics and how to generate electricity from sunlight.
The course consists only of lectures (HOC) in a blend online/interactive format. The course builds - for the largest part - on material as discussed in the book "Optics" by Eugene Hecht. A digital copy of the detailed course notes containing - for the largest part - excerpts from the above mentioned book, together with recordings of HOC-sessions, are made available to the students by ways of the CANVAS platform. This needs to be supplemented with additional information provided in the powerpoint slides used during the lectures. All the lecture slides are made available to the students by ways of the CANVAS platform as well. Students can opt for purchasing the book "Optics" by Eugene Hecht from any bookshop. They are encouraged to consult this book, which is available at Vrije Universiteit Brussel's library.
In exceptional circumstances and should sanitary restrictions need to be enforced such that not all students can attend the lectures on campus, the lectures will be made available as pre-recorded sessions by ways of the CANVAS platform. Students will be able to consult these any time. Students will receive clear instructions through CANVAS about which material they should study in a given week. A weekly interactive questions and answers session will then be organized on-line using the BigBlueButton feature on the CANVAS platform.
This course aims at introducing the basic concepts of optics and photonics.
The main goal is to provide the knowledge needed to follow the main courses of the master in photonics; namely microphotonics, optical communication systems, design of refractive and diffractive optical imaging systems and lasers.
The main learning outcome is as follows:
The student must be able to demonstrate an in-depth understanding of the basic concepts of optics and photonics, that underpins photonic applications and systems, including, scattering, reflection and refraction, absorption, light propagation through materials and optical fibers, light generation in lasers, light detection with photodiodes etc.
In addition, the student must be able to show that:
The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Oral Exam determines 100% of the final mark.
Within the Oral Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:
The regular evaluation form is an oral exam with preparation on paper. The first part of the oral examination consists of answering one main question that is picked by the student from a series of index cards. The main question is to be answered in detail and accounts for 13 out 20 points. The student then receives a second question about a subject from another part of the course. This question can be answered more concisely and accounts for 7 out of 20 points. The total score for the two questions yields a final score on a total of 20 points.
In addition to demonstrating that she/he understands the subject matter and the physical principles, and that she/he is able to deliver structured answers, the student must also:
• know units;
• know orders of magnitude;
• know how to draw and discuss key figures/graphs;
• make mathematical derivations.
In exceptional circumstances and should sanitary restrictions need to be enforced, the exam will be organized in an on-line oral format using a pre-defined webconference tool, with small modifications to the examination process in terms of required extensiveness of the allowed duration for the answer to the main question and the manner in which this main question will be formulated. Precise instructions in this case will be provided by ways of the CANVAS platform.
This offer is part of the following study plans:
Master of Electronics and Information Technology Engineering: Standaard traject (only offered in Dutch)
Master of Photonics Engineering: On campus traject
Master of Photonics Engineering: Online/Digital traject
Master of Electrical Engineering: Standaard traject BRUFACE J
Master of Teaching in Science and Technology: ingenieurswetenschappen (120 ECTS, Etterbeek) (only offered in Dutch)