Laser Applications

Laser Applications

(8th semester - 3 hours teaching weekly)

Teaching jointly with Dr. M. Fakis.

Course Outline:

• The laser as light source: properties of laser radiations, principles of laser operation. Laser sources for Spectroscopy.
• Scattering of light: Rayleigh, Mie, Raman, Brillouin.
• Instrumentation for Spectroscopy: diffraction and optical gratings, lenses, mirrors, filters, beam-splitters, polarizers, monochromators-spectrographs, Light Detectors (photomultipliers, photodiodes, diode arrays, CCD, ICCD, semiconductor based detectors for IR radiations, streak camera).
• Devices and Instrumentation for measuring low level electrical signals: Lock–in amplifiers, Boxcar integrators.
• Laser Spectroscopy: Laser Induced Fluorescence (LIF), Multi-photon Ionization Spectroscopy (MPI), Raman Spectroscopy, Infrared Spectroscopy (IR).
• Laser Induced Plasma Spectroscopy.
• Laser cooling. Bose–Einstein condensation.
• Introduction to Nonlinear Optics: the nonlinear optical susceptibility, wave equation description of nonlinear optical interactions, nonlinear absorption and refraction, second and third harmonic generation, nonlinear optical materials, the “all–optical” processes.
• Optical Trapping and applications in Biology and Medicine.
• Bio-photonics: basics of laser tissue interactions, Photodynamic Therapies.
• Bio-nano-photonics: applications of nanoparticles (quantum dots, metallic nanoparticles) in medical imaging and diagnostics.
  
  

Bibliography:

• “Lasers-Optoelectronics”, S. Couris
• “Optics and Photonics: An Introduction”, F. Graham Smith, T. A. King, D. Wilkins, 2nd Ed., John Wiley & Sons, 2007.
• “Laser Spectroscopy: Basic concepts and Instrumentation”, W. Demtröder, 3rd Ed., Springer 2003.
• “Introduction to Optics”, F. L. Pedrotti, L. S. Pedrotti, 2nd Ed., Prentice Hall Int. 1997.
• “Lasers: Principles and Applications”, J. Wilson, J.F.B. Hawkes, Prentice Hall.
• “Physics of Optoelectronics”, Michael A. Parker, Taylor & Francis Group, 2005.
• “Introduction to Biophotonics”, P. N. Prasad, John Wiley & Sons, 2003.
• “Fundamentals of Photonics”, Saleh Teich, Wiley.
• Review articles from the journals “Nature”, “Science” and “Physics Today”.
• “Notes on Lasers’ Applications in Physics, Chemistry and Materials Science”, S. Couris,