Optics Commons^™

Adaptive Beam Director For A Tiled Fiber Array, Mikhail Vorontsov, Jim F. Riker, Ernst Polnau, Svetlana Lachinova, Venkata S. Rao Gudimetla

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

We present the concept development of a novel atmospheric compensation system based on adaptive tiled fiber array architecture operating with target-in-the-loop scenarios for directed beam applications. The adaptive tiled fiber array system is integrated with adaptive beam director (ABD). Wavefront control and sensing functions are performed directly on the beam director telescope primary mirror. The beam control of the adaptive tiled fiber array aims to compensate atmospheric turbulence-induced dynamic phase aberrations and results in a corresponding brightness increase on the illuminated extended object. The system is specifically designed for tiled fiber system architectures operating in strong intensity scintillation and speckle-modulation …

Enhanced Cerenkov Second-Harmonic Generation In Patterned Lithium Niobate, Cong Deng, Joseph W. Haus, Andrew Sarangan, Aziz Mahfoud, Concita Sibilia, Michael Scalora, Aleksei M. Zheltikov

Electro-Optics and Photonics Faculty Publications

We present experimental results of second harmonic generation enhancement through the resonance of the band edge in a photonic crystal based on lithium niobate. Proton exchange technique was used to fabricate a waveguide near the surface of the lithium niobate substrate. The photonic crystal structure over the waveguide was made by UV laser interferometry. Subsequently experiments were designed to quantify the Cerenkov second-harmonic generation (CSHG) radiated into the substrate. The SHG radiated inside the waveguides was also experimentally investigated. In our experiments, the second guided mode of the waveguide was tuned to the band edge resonance to enhance the second …

Partition-Based Interpolation For Color Filter Array Demosaicking And Super-Resolution Reconstruction, Min Shao, Kenneth E. Barner, Russell C. Hardie

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

A class of partition-based interpolators that addresses a variety of image interpolation applications are proposed. The proposed interpolators first partition an image into a finite set of partitions that capture local image structures. Missing high resolution pixels are then obtained through linear operations on neighboring pixels that exploit the captured image structure. By exploiting the local image structure, the proposed algorithm produces excellent performance on both edge and uniform regions. The presented results demonstrate that partition-based interpolation yields results superior to traditional and advanced algorithms in the applications of color filter array (CFA) demosaicking and super-resolution reconstruction.

Scene-Based Nonuniformity Correction Technique For Focal-Plane Arrays Using Readout Architecture, Balaji Narayanan, Russell C. Hardie, Robert A. Muse

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Spatial fixed pattern noise is a common and major problem in modern infrared imagers due to the nonuniform response of the photodiodes in the focal plane array of the imaging system. In addition, the nonuniform response of the readout and the digitization electronics, involved in multiplexing the signals from the photodiodes, causes further nonuniformity. In this paper, we describe a novel scene based nonuniformity correction algorithm that treats the aggregate nonuniformity in separate stages. Firstly, the nonuniformity from the readout amplifiers is corrected using knowledge of the readout architecture of the imaging system. In the second stage, the nonuniformity resulting …

Signal Flow Analysis, Partha P. Banerjee

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Signal flow graphs are a viable alternative to block diagrammatic representation of a system. What makes signal flow graphs attractive is that certain features from graph theory can be applied to the simplification and the synthesis of complex systems.

Functional Nanoparticles In Thin Films As Sensing Media, Elena A. Guliants, Ryan Schwarb, Hope Bearbower, James R. Gord, Christopher E. Bunker

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

The combination of unique properties offered by materials on the nanoscale with the increased role of surface chemistry in nanostructured solids makes core-shell nanoparticles extremely attractive for application to "smart" thin-film coatings. Sensing properties of nanoparticle-based thin films were studied in several systems containing organic-coated semiconductor and metallic particles. In semiconductors, the interaction of organic shell and/or thin-film "matrix" with the environment results in changes in the nanoparticle's surface states, altering the optical properties of the thin film. Measuring the electrical properties of thin films composed of metallic cores with hydrocarbon shells offers another mechanism to monitor the local environment …

Wide Angle Decentered Lens Beam Steering For Infrared Countermeasures Applications, Jennifer L. Gibson, Bradley D. Duncan, Edward A. Watson, John S. Loomis

Electro-Optics and Photonics Faculty Publications

A beam-steering system consisting of three cemented achromatic doublets is presented. Intended for use in IR countermeasure applications, our system is designed to operate over the 2- to 5-μm spectrum with minimum angular dispersion. We show that dispersion can be minimized by using doublet lenses fashioned from AMTIR-1 and germanium. Our system is designed to be compact and lightweight, with no internal foci, while allowing steering to ±22.5 deg. We also maintain a minimum 2-in. clear aperture for all steering angles, and a nominal divergence of 1 mrad. Plane wave and Gaussian beam analyses of our system are presented.

Volume Holographic Recording And Readout For 90-Deg Geometry, Partha P. Banerjee, Monish Ranjan Chatterjee, Nickolai Kukhtarev, Tatiana Kukhtareva

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

When a prerecorded cross-beam hologram is reconstructed (so-called edge-lit readout) with a uniform plane wave and a point source, the resulting exact solutions reveal Bessel-function-type diffracted beam profiles, which are fundamentally modified under weak propagational diffraction. The case of a profiled beam readout with propagational diffraction may be analyzed using a transfer function approach based on 2-D Laplace transforms. In a second series of investigations, dynamic readout from a cross-beam volume hologram recorded with two orthogonal uniform plane waves is considered for various dependences of the refractive index modulation with intensity. Typically, refractive index profiles that are proportional to the …

Map Estimation For Hyperspectral Image Resolution Enhancement Using An Auxiliary Sensor, Russell C. Hardie, Michael T. Eismann, Gregory L. Wilson

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper presents a novel maximum a posteriori (MAP) estimator for enhancing the spatial resolution of an image using co-registered high spatial-resolution imagery from an auxiliary sensor. Here we focus on the use of high-resolution panchomatic data to enhance hyperspectral imagery. However, the estimation framework developed allows for any number of spectral bands in the primary and auxiliary image. The proposed technique is suitable for applications where some correlation, either localized or global, exists between the auxiliary image and the image being enhanced. To exploit localized correlations, a spatially varying statistical model, based on vector quantization, is used. Another important …

Volume Holographic Optical Elements, Ching-Cherng Sun, Partha P. Banerjee

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

The final two papers are concerned with the analysis of novel holograms. Banerjee et al. investigate holographic recording and reconstruction for edge-lit holograms recorded in a 90-degree geometry. Various cases of recording and readout that incorporate propagational diffraction have been modeled. It is shown that the 90-degree geometry can result in beam shaping, as evidenced through preliminary experimental results with photorefractive lithium niobate. Nguyen et al. propose a new approach for designing computer-generated holograms. An artificial neural network is used to initiate the genetic algorithm so that the high computation cost of genetic algorithms for synthesizing holograms is significantly reduced …

Interferometric And Holographic Imaging Of Surface-Breaking Cracks, James Lawrence Blackshire, Bradley D. Duncan

Electro-Optics and Photonics Faculty Publications

Two advanced nondestructive evaluation systems are developed for imaging surface-breaking cracks in aerospace materials. The systems use scanning heterodyne interferometry and frequency-translated holography principles to image ultrasonic displacement fields on material surfaces with high resolution and sensitivity. Surface-breaking cracks are detected and characterized by visualizing near-field ultrasonic scattering processes, which in turn results in local intensification of ultrasonic displacement fields in the immediate vicinity of a crack. The local intensification permits cracks to be easily distinguished from background levels, and creates unique displacement field images that follow the contours and morphology of the cracks with microscopic precision. The interferometric and …

Examination Of Focused Beam Propagation Through A Finite Non-Reciprocal Planar Chiral Slab Using Complex Fresnel Coefficients And Dual Transforms, Monish Ranjan Chatterjee, Sumit Nema, Partha P. Banerjee

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Recently, uniform plane wave propagation across a nonchiral-chiral interface was examined via the development of appropriate Fresnel coefficients. In this extension, propagation of focused uniform and profiled beams through a finite, planar nonreciprocal chiral slab is investigated using complex Fresnel coefficients via angular plane wave decomposition and dual transforms.

Revisiting The Fresnel Coefficients For Uniform Plane Wave Propagation Across A Nonchiral, Reciprocal And Chiral, Nonreciprocal Interface, Monish Ranjan Chatterjee, Sumit Nema

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

The problem of EM wave propagation in non-reciprocal chiral media has been studied by several investigators. In a recent approach, a dual-transform technique has been developed to study the problem of such propagation under paraxial and slow-envelope variation conditions.

In this paper, we first outline some of the results obtained using the dual transform technique for arbitrary boundary conditions within the left boundary of a semi-infinite, non-reciprocal chiral medium for a uniform plane wave, and a fundamental Gaussian-profiled beam. Next, we explore the problem of a uniform EM wave incident at an oblique angle at an interface between a reciprocal, …

Wide Angle Achromatic Prism Beam Steering For Infrared Countermeasures Applications, Bradley D. Duncan, Philip J. Bos, Vassili Sergan

Electro-Optics and Photonics Faculty Publications

The design and analysis of achromatic doublet prisms for use in laser beam steering is presented. The geometric relationships describing the maximum steering angle are given, as are discussions of first- and second-order dispersion reduction. Infrared (IR) material alternatives and optimum IR material characteristics for wide-angle achromatic prism beam steering are also investigated. Sixteen materials in 120 different combinations have been examined to date. For midwave IR applications it is shown that the minimum dispersion currently achievable across the full 2 to 5 μm spectrum is 1.7816 mrad at an average maximum steering angle of 45 deg. This is accomplished …

Index-Matched Boundary Techniques For The Elimination Of Acoustical Resonances, Jack H. Parker, Bradley D. Duncan

Electro-Optics and Photonics Faculty Publications

We extend the principle of optical index of refraction to apply the concept of acoustical index for transverse acoustical wave propagation in strings. The relationship between acoustical index and mass density of the acoustic material is developed. With this theoretical link established, classic index-matching techniques are explored at acoustical boundaries. Proper selection of boundary interface segments leads to the elimination of resonant vibrationalmodes that occur in rigidly supported strings, while maintaining the nonresonant vibration response.

Digital Image Processing, Russell C. Hardie, Majeed M. Hayat

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

In recent years, digital images and digital image processing have become part of everyday life. This growth has been primarily fueled by advances in digital computers and the advent and growth of the Internet. Furthermore, commercially available digital cameras, scanners, and other equipment for acquiring, storing, and displaying digital imagery have become very inexpensive and increasingly powerful. An excellent treatment of digital images and digital image processing can be found in Ref. [1]. A digital image is simply a two-dimensional array of finite-precision numerical values called picture elements (or pixels). Thus a digital image is a spatially discrete (or discrete-space) …

Chaotic Free-Space Laser Communication Over Turbulent Channel, N. F. Rulkov, Mikhail Vorontsov, L. Illing

Electro-Optics and Photonics Faculty Publications

The dynamics of errors caused by atmospheric turbulence in a self-synchronizing chaos-based communication system that stably transmits information over a ∼5  km free-space laser link is studied experimentally. Binary information is transmitted using a chaotic sequence of short-term pulses as a carrier. The information signal slightly shifts the chaotic time position of each pulse depending on the information bit. We report the results of an experimental analysis of the atmospheric turbulence in the channel and the impact of turbulence on the bit-error-rate performance of this chaos-based communication system.

Sensitivity Comparison Of Ladar Receivers Designed To Detect Glint Targets, Christopher D. Brewer, Bradley D. Duncan, Edward A. Watson

Electro-Optics and Photonics Faculty Publications

We present four receiver designs for a ladar system, based on an optical parametric amplifier, that is designed to collect returns from glint targets. After coupling the return energy into periodically poled lithium niobate, the target backscatter is detected with either an infrared camera or a CCD array. Assuming reasonable detector and system characteristics, the sensitivity of each design is then evaluated by setting the receiver SNR detection threshold equal to one and using the minimum transmitted energy as the figure of merit. Through numerical analysis, we show that an upconversion receiver followed by a visible CCD array offers the …

Implementation Of A Si/Sic Hybrid Optically Controlled High-Power Switching Device, Prashant Bhadri, Kuntao Ye, Elena A. Guliants, Fred R. Beyette Jr.

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

The ever-increasing performance and economy of operation requirements placed on commercial and military transport aircraft are resulting in very complex systems. As a result, the use of fiber optic component technology has lead to high data throughput, immunity to EMI, reduced certification and maintenance costs and reduced weight features. In particular, in avionic systems, data integrity and high data rates are necessary for stable flight control. Fly-by-Light systems that use optical signals to actuate the flight control surfaces of an aircraft have been suggested as a solution to the EMI problem in avionic systems. Current fly-by-light systems are limited by …

Translation Of 'Balika Badhu: A Selected Anthology Of Bengali Short Stories', Monish Ranjan Chatterjee

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

This project, which began with the desire to render into English a rather long tale by Bimal Kar about five years ago, eventually grew into a considerably more extended compilation of Bengali short stories by 10 of the most well-known practitioners of that art since the heyday of Rabindranath Tagore. The collection is limited in many ways, not the least of which being that no woman writer has been included, and that it contains only a baker's dozen stories (if we count Bonophool's micro-stories collectively as one ) — a number pitifully small considering the vast and prolific field of …

A 0.5 Μm Thick Polysilicon Schottky Diode With Rectification Ratio Of 10^6, Elena A. Guliants, Chunhai Ji, Young J. Song, Wayne A. Anderson

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Polycrystalline Si films, 0.5-mm thick, were obtained as a result of metal-induced growth by sputtering from a Si target on 25 nm thick Ni prelayers at 525 °C. Silicon grew heteroepitaxially on the NiSi2 layer formed due to the reaction between the sputtered Si atoms and Ni. Schottky diodes were fabricated on the Si films by deposition of a Schottky metal on the front surface of the film while Ni disilicide provided an intimate ohmic contact at the back. A Pd/n-Si diode using an n-Si film annealed for 2 h at 700 °C in forming gas demonstrated a rectification ratio …

Cooling Atoms In An Optical Trap By Selective Parametric Excitation, Nicola Poli, Robert J. Brecha, Giacomo Roati, Giovanni Modugno

Physics Faculty Publications

We demonstrate the possibility of energy-selective removal of cold atoms from a tight optical trap by means of parametric excitation of the trap vibrational modes. Taking advantage of the anharmonicity of the trap potential, we either selectively remove the most energetic trapped atoms or excite those at the bottom of the trap by tuning the parametric modulation frequency. This process, which had been previously identified as a possible source of heating, also appears to be a robust way for forcing evaporative cooling in anharmonic traps.

Self-Assembly Of Spatially Separated Silicon Structures By Si Heteroepitaxy On Ni Disilicide, Elena A. Guliants, Chunhai Ji, Wayne A. Anderson

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

A nonlithographic approach to produce self-assembled spatially separated Si structures for nanoelectronic applications was developed, employing the metal-induced silicon growth. Densely packed Si whiskers, 500–800 nm thick and up to 2500 nm long, were obtained by magnetron sputtering of Si on a 25 nm thick Ni prelayer at 575 °C. The nucleation of the NiSi2 compound at the Ni–Si interface followed by the Si heteroepitaxy on the lattice-matched NiSi2 is suggested to be the driving force for the whisker formation.

Techniques For The Regeneration Of Wideband Speech From Narrowband Speech, Jason A. Fuemmeler, Russell C. Hardie, William R. Gardner

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper addresses the problem of reconstructing wideband speech signals from observed narrowband speech signals. The goal of this work is to improve the perceived quality of speech signals which have been transmitted through narrowband channels or degraded during acquisition. We describe a system, based on linear predictive coding, for estimating wideband speech from narrowband. This system employs both previously identified and novel techniques. Experimental results are provided in order to illustrate the system’s ability to improve speech quality. Both objective and subjective criteria are used to evaluate the quality of the processed speech signals.

Feedback Correction Of Angular Error In Grating Readout, Monish Ranjan Chatterjee, Sundaram Ramachandran

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Angular and wavelength READ beam errors in holographic interconnection systems are often a recurrent problem. Several strategies have been proposed to minimize or eliminate such READOUT misalignments.

Some years ago, Chatterjee and co-workers proposed a method involving READ beam wavelength tuning to correct output angular errors. In this paper, we investigate the possibility of using an acousto-optic (A-O) Bragg cell with optoelectronic feedback to dynamically correct the scattered beam for deviations in the incidence direction of the READ beam of a hologram. The concept here is based on an acoustic frequency feedback strategy used recently by Balakshy and Kazaryan for …

Overview Of Acousto-Optic Bistability, Chaos, And Logical Applications, Monish Ranjan Chatterjee, Erol Sonmez

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

An overview is presented of the key results in the field of acousto-optic bistability in the past two decades. It is shown that the basic acousto-optic bistable device may be described as a nonlinear dynamical system which satisfies a quadratic map. Thereafter, details are presented of several analytical methods, computer modeling approaches, including the SPICE circuit modeling technique, and experiments that have been used to understand the phenomenon.

Extensions to logical and digital applications are also discussed.

Study Of Dynamics And Mechanism Of Metal-Induced Silicon Growth, Elena A. Guliants, Wayne A. Anderson

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

The present study addresses the mechanism of metal-induced growth of device-quality silicon thin films. Si deposition was performed by magnetron sputtering on a 25-nm-thick Ni prelayer at 525–625 °C and yielded a continuous, highly crystalline film with a columnar structure. A Ni disilicide intermediate layer formed as a result of the Ni reaction with Si deposit provides a sufficient site for the Si epitaxial growth because lattice mismatch is small between the two materials. The reaction between Ni and Si was observed to progress in several stages. The NixSiy phase evolution in a Ni:Si layer was studied by x-ray photoelectron …

Two-Level Atom In An Optical Parametric Oscillator: Spectra Of Transmitted And Fluorescent Fields In The Weak Driving Field Limit, James P. Clemens, Perry R. Rice, Pranaw Kumar Rungta, Robert J. Brecha

Physics Faculty Publications

We consider the interaction of a two-level atom inside an optical parametric oscillator. In the weak-driving-field limit, we essentially have an atom-cavity system driven by the occasional pair of correlated photons, or weakly squeezed light. We find that we may have holes, or dips, in the spectrum of the fluorescent and transmitted light. This occurs even in the strong-coupling limit when we find holes in the vacuum-Rabi doublet. Also, spectra with a subnatural linewidth may occur. These effects disappear for larger driving fields, unlike the spectral narrowing obtained in resonance fluorescence in a squeezed vacuum; here it is important that …

Rotation-Invariant Synthetic Discriminant Function Filter For Pattern Recognition, Vahid R. Riasati, Partha P. Banerjee, Mustafa A. G. Abushagur, Kenneth B. Howell

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

The ring synthetic discriminant function (RSDF) filter for rotation-invariant response is discussed for pattern recognition. This method uses one half of a slice of the Fourier transform of the object to generate the transfer function of the filter. This is accomplished by rotating the one half of a slice in the Fourier domain through 2π rad about the zero-frequency point of the Fourier plane. This filter has the advantage of always matching at least one half of a slice of the Fourier transform of any rotation of the image. An analytical discussion of the filter construction and correlation results are …

Characterization Of Poly-Si Thin Films Deposited By Magnetron Sputtering Onto Ni Prelayers, Elena A. Guliants, Wayne A. Anderson

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

A method of producing a polycrystalline silicon thin film on a foreign substrate without subsequent annealing has been developed. Thermally evaporated 5–100 nm thick Nifilms served as prelayers for magnetron sputtered Si thin films. A continuous film was obtained as a result of metal induced growth of polysilicon during low temperature (below 600 °C) deposition. The film uniformity is promising for large area device applications. The influence of the Ni prelayer thickness on the grain size of thus obtained films was investigated. Atomic force microscopy and cross-sectional scanning electron microscopy studies revealed features in the 150–600 nm size range while …