Research Areas and Methods

The group is focused on extending the fundamentals and methods of optical system design and simulation. Research questions are how modern optical technologies such as meta-lenses, diffractive optics, gradient-index lenses, freeform surfaces can be used efficiently in optical systems, how AI can be incorporated in optical design methodology and how concepts and architectures of optical systems can be extended to create new fields of application.

Optical System Design

• Design of optical systems for modern applications
• Aberration theory
• Performance evaluation of optical systems
• Optimization methods and strategies in optical design
• Tolerancing of optical systems
• Emerging optical technologies and components in optical systems

Physical-optical Simulation

• Coherent, noncoherent and partially coherent light propagation and image formation
• Point spread function engineering
• Digital-optical co-optimization and computational imaging
• Virtual prototyping, holistic simulation
• Straylight and scattering in optical systems

Conceptional layout and system engineering of optical systems

• Layout of optical systems
• Systematic budgeting of performance and cost parameters
• Novel optical system architectures