Shanti Bhattacharya

This book introduces the fundamentals of optics, a field essential to both everyday life and advanced technologies, yet often overlooked in engineering education. Importantly, it includes chapters on complex light, as well as light-based applications. Designed for both students and industry professionals, it aims to make optics accessible while inspiring curiosity, using practical exercises with tools like OSLO, Zemax OpticStudio, and Matlab to deepen understanding.

This book supplements the available literature on diffractive optic elements (DOEs) by equipping readers with the skills to begin designing, simulating, and fabricating diffractive optics. The design of DOEs using MATLAB is presented with simple equations and step-by-step procedures for simulation—from the simplest 1D grating to the more complex multifunctional DOEs—along with analysis of their diffraction patterns. The fundamentals of fabrication techniques such as photolithography and focused ion beam lithography are presented with basic instructions for the beginner. Examples of error analysis and error-correction techniques are also discussed. The material is supported by practical exercises and clearly commented MATLAB codes (the codes are also on an accompanying CD), making this book useful even to a novice programmer.