Librería Portfolio

Aimed at students taking laboratory courses in experimental optics, this book introduces readers to optical instruments and their uses. The book explains the basic operation of lenses, mirrors, telescopes in the laboratory and under field conditions, how to use optical instruments to their maximum potential and how to keep them in working order. It gives an account of the laws of geometrical optics which govern the design, layout and working of optical instruments. The book describes the interactions of polarised light with matter and the instruments and devices derived from this, and discusses the choice of spectrometers and detectors for various spectral regions, with particular attention to CCD cameras. The emphasis throughout is on description, with mathematical precision confined to the appendices, which explain the ray transfer matrix and outline the Seidel theory of optical aberrations. The appendices also introduce Fourier methods in optics and Fourier transform infra-red spectrometry.

Explains the principles underlying the optical instruments commonly used in scientific research and analysis, preparing students for the instruments and experiments they will meet in the laboratory
Gives instructions and advice on the proper use and care of optical instruments and devices
Illustrates the methods and applications offered by optical devices in scientific research



Table of Contents

1. Introduction: centred optical systems
2. Telescopes and binoculars
3. Eyepieces, eyes and colour
4. Cameras and camera lenses
5. The scientific CCD camera
6. Spectrometry
7. Interferometers and their uses
8. Electro-optical effects and their uses
9. Microscopes and projectors
10. Siderostats and coelostats
11. The detection and measurement of radiation
12. Practicalities
Further reading
Appendices
Index.