EE485 Introduction to Photonics

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Schedule and
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Homeworks

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Meeting time: MW 10:30-12:20
Location: EE1 042

Instructor: Lih Y. Lin (lin@ee.washington.edu)

Office: M-414 EE1
Office hour: MW 12:30-1:30 or by appointment

Download course syllabus

Pre-requisite

There is no pre-requisite to this class, but basic understanding of Electromagnetic Wave will be a plus.

Course Description

Optics - First enunciated by Euclid as Geometrical Optics or Ray Optics in his "Catoptrics" in 300 B.C., has evolved into a broad discipline elegantly formulated by a set of fundamental physical principles and rigorously developed mathematical equations. The long debate between geometrical optics and wave optics lead to Maxwell equations that founded electromagnetic optics. Mystery about absorption and emission was finally explained by quantum theory, which treated light as photons, in the beginning of 20th century.

Now widely referred as Photonics, which accounts for photon aspect of light and includes treatment on various photonic devices, this discipline has made rapid progresses and broad impacts in various fields in the last few decades, such as Optoelectronic devices and systems, Optical fiber communications, Optical MEMS (Micro-electro-mechanical systems), Biophotonics, Nanophotonics, new photonic materials and structures.

EE485, "Introduction to Photonics", will provide introductory lectures on fundamental optical principles and phenomena, as well as photonic devices for electrical engineers. The main topics of the course include:

  • Geometrical optics and its applications in fiber optics
  • Wave optics
  • Superposition of waves and interference
  • Diffraction
  • Polarization
  • Photon, laser and Gaussian beam optics
  • Semiconductor optics
  • Photodetectors
  • LEDs and semiconductor lasers

    Textbooks

    F. L. Pedrotti, L. S. Pedrotti, and L. M. Pedrotti, Introduction to Optics, 3rd ed., Prentice Hall.

    Reference:
    - S. O. Kasap, Optoelectronics and Photonics, Prentice Hall.
    - B. E. A. Saleh and M. C. Teich, Fundamentals of Photonics, Wiley-Interscience.
    - J. T. Verdeyen, Laser Electronics, 3rd ed., Prentice Hall.

    Grading

    Homework assignments: 40%
    Midterm exam: 30%
    Final exam: 30%

    Class EMail list

    ee485a_au08@u.washington.edu