This course can also be taken for academic credit as ECEA 5600, part of CU Boulder’s Master of Science in Electrical Engineering degree.
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Optical Engineering SpecializationUniversity of Colorado BoulderAbout this Course
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Learner Career Outcomes
20%
started a new career after completing these courses
20%
got a tangible career benefit from this course
12%
got a pay increase or promotion
Shareable Certificate
Earn a Certificate upon completion
100% online
Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.
Course 1 of 3 in the
Flexible deadlines
Reset deadlines in accordance to your schedule.
Advanced Level
Approx. 21 hours to complete
English
Subtitles: Arabic, French, Portuguese (European), Chinese (Simplified), Italian, Vietnamese, Korean, German, Russian, Turkish, English, Spanish
What you will learn
be able to design, to first order, such optical systems with simple mathematical and graphical techniques
Learner Career Outcomes
20%
started a new career after completing these courses
20%
got a tangible career benefit from this course
12%
got a pay increase or promotion
Shareable Certificate
Earn a Certificate upon completion
100% online
Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.
Course 1 of 3 in the
Flexible deadlines
Reset deadlines in accordance to your schedule.
Advanced Level
Approx. 21 hours to complete
English
Subtitles: Arabic, French, Portuguese (European), Chinese (Simplified), Italian, Vietnamese, Korean, German, Russian, Turkish, English, Spanish
Offered by
University of Colorado Boulder
CU-Boulder is a dynamic community of scholars and learners on one of the most spectacular college campuses in the country. As one of 34 U.S. public institutions in the prestigious Association of American Universities (AAU), we have a proud tradition of academic excellence, with five Nobel laureates and more than 50 members of prestigious academic academies.
Start working towards your Master's degree
This course is part of the 100% online Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from University of Colorado Boulder.
If you are admitted to the full program, your courses count towards your degree learning.
Syllabus - What you will learn from this course
4 hours to complete
Introduction to Geometrical Optics
This module introduces rays, which we use to describe the motion of light through air and materials. The course overview describes the goals of this course and gives tips on how to make the best use of the course materials to be successful. The lectures introduce the material. The in-video questions, lab demonstrations, PhET interactive demonstration, practice problems, and homework assignment allow you to get actively involved in learning the material.
4 hours to complete
9 videos (Total 49 min), 2 readings, 3 quizzes
2 hours to complete
Optical System Design in OpticStudio
In this module, you will learn how to enter the description of an optical system into OpticStudio, analyze the performance of that system using various calculations and plots, and finally optimize that design by defining a merit function and search variables.
2 hours to complete
7 videos (Total 70 min), 6 readings
5 hours to complete
First Order Ray Tracing
This module applies Snell's Laws to the curved interfaces of lenses and mirrors. You will learn the graphical and mathematical tools you need to calculate image size and location for thin lens and mirror systems. This foundation is essential to build more complex optical systems.
5 hours to complete
12 videos (Total 96 min), 1 reading, 3 quizzes
5 hours to complete
Thick Optics and Mirrors
This module extends the analysis of the previous module to include the effects of real, thick lenses. You will learn how to input this factor into your optical system analysis and design.
5 hours to complete
8 videos (Total 59 min), 2 readings, 3 quizzes
Reviews
TOP REVIEWS FROM FIRST ORDER OPTICAL SYSTEM DESIGN
by TCJan 26, 2021
Great content but the provided learning resources are limited to the video lectures and exercises. There is no staff helping in the discussion forums. Question hang there without answers for months.
by WLMay 17, 2019
Great course, but the tool (Demo version Zemax) is not very useful because of the removal of several important features (e.g. save, undo and limited precision).
by RGAug 25, 2019
Really nice course with very clear explanations of the principles of optical engineering and learn how to use ZEMAX Opticstudio to simulate your optical system
by ARApr 29, 2020
An excellent course that teaches you geometric optics and gets you started with ZEMAX. Some of the quizzes have typos/bugs in them, but this is a minor gripe.
About the Optical Engineering Specialization
The courses in this specialization can also be taken for academic credit as ECEA 5600-5602, part of CU Boulder’s Master of Science in Electrical Engineering degree. Enroll here.
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