Volume 4, Issue 5-6 - Standards in Optics and Optical Measurement

In every advanced optical system, light scattering caused by the imperfections of optical components sooner or later becomes an issue that needs to be addressed. Light scattering can be a critical factor for both the throughput and the imaging quality of optical systems. On a component level, the quantities to describe these effects are the scatter loss or total scattering (TS) and the scattering distribution function or angle-resolved light scattering (ARS). In the last decades, a number of instruments have been developed worldwide for the measurement of TS and ARS. However, numerous pitfalls have to be avoided to obtain objective, reliable, and reproducible measurement results. This is, in particular, true for low scatter levels of high-end optical components. Standard procedures that have to be both concise and easy to implement are thus of crucial importance for the optics community. This paper tries to give an overview on existing standards as well as an outlook on new standards that are still being developed. Special emphasis is put on ISO standards jointly developed, reviewed, and revised by the international experts in the field.

In 1996, the international organization for standardization ISO started the standards series ISO 10110 specifying indications in drawings of optical elements. Three parts cover material properties: part 2 (stress birefringence), 3 (bubbles and inclusions), and 4 (inhomogeneity and striae). Customers used to just send optical element drawings to glass manufacturers often leading to uncertainty, overspecification, and delivery problems. The raw glass standard ISO 12123 of 2010 allows direct addressing of raw glass specifications. Harmonizing ISO 10110 with ISO 12123 and progress in inspection methods require updating of the material specifying parts. A new part 18 containing all properties is under preparation and is meant to replace parts 2–4. ISO 12123 will be amended by introducing definitions for relative partial dispersions and reference normal lines and grade denominations for tolerance ranges. The working draft ISO/WD 10110 part 18 extends indication possibilities to allow relating to ISO 12123 while ensuring backward compatibility. Default optical glass quality and direct specification of raw glass simplify tolerancing considerably. Annexes support selection of appropriate quality classes referring to optical element size categories. Test and inspection standards on chemical resistances, hardness, stress birefringence, and optical homogeneity will be maintained. Standards for water resistance, refractive index, and striae inspection are being prepared.

The European laser safety standards EN 207, EN 208, and EN 12254 each contain an annex B, which serves as a guidance for the selection of products. These annexes are informative only and are therefore not binding. As there are a variety of hazard scenarios, it is not recommended to change these annexes to a normative status, through which they would become mandatory. Instead, it is recommended to allow users to apply their own skills and know-how in selecting appropriate products, justifying where and why they deviate from the guidance in the standards. This paper explains the background on which the guidance for selection in the annexes of the standards is based and shows physically meaningful leeway.

Electronic autocollimators are utilised versatilely for non-contact angle measurements in applications like straightness measurements and profilometry. Yet, no calibration of the angle measurement of an autocollimator has been available when both its measurement axes are engaged. Additionally, autocollimators have been calibrated at fixed distances to the reflector, although its distance may vary during the use of an autocollimator. To extend the calibration capabilities of the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) regarding spatial angles and variable distances, a novel calibration device has been set up: the spatial angle autocollimator calibrator (SAAC). In this paper, its concept and its mechanical realisation will be presented. The focus will be on the system’s mathematical modelling and its application in spatial angle calibrations. The model considers the misalignments of the SAAC’s components, including the non-orthogonalities of the measurement axes of the autocollimators and of the rotational axes of the tilting unit. It allows us to derive specific measurement procedures to determine the misalignments in situ and, in turn, to correct the measurements of the autocollimators. Finally, the realisation and the results of a traceable spatial angle calibration of an autocollimator will be presented. This is the first calibration of this type worldwide.

Modern lens design software improves the performance of a given design. However, a novice may not have a suitable starting design available. This paper presents several methodologies that can be applied to a variety of optical design problems, in order to generate a configuration with a high likelihood of meeting a set of goals.

We discuss the findings of a recent optical design study into layered polymeric gradient index lenses (known as L-GRIN). A range of GRIN singlet lenses were designed for various aperture and field-of-view configurations. Their optical performance was compared to polymer diffractive lenses and glass-cemented doublets (both spherical and aspheric) designed to the same specification. We find that diamond-turned polymer GRIN lenses offer comparable performance to achromatic doublets and polymer diffractive hybrid elements over a significant aperture and field-of-view range. We also find that the correction potential of GRIN solutions is substantially increased when the bulk GRIN Abbé value ( V 10 ) is negative, the GRIN distribution is radial, or the index range (Δ N ) of the GRIN is increased significantly.