LaserTech Quality Assurance of Precision Optics OER

Program Description

Pasadena City College's Laser Technology program offers a two-year Associates in Science degree and a Certificate of Achievement in Laser Technology. The program exposes students to the scientific principles of optics, fiber-optics, and lasers. Students are instructed on the processes and equipment incorporating these devices in electronic and electro-optics systems. This training will prepare students to become technicians who work on products or devices in manufacturing, communications, defense, homeland security, medical, information technology, energy, environmental monitoring, lighting, displays, and entertainment. After the program, students will be able to pursue entry level employment as a photonics or photonics-related technician. 

Course Description

This Canvas course and open educational resource (OER), from Pasadena City College, addresses the basics of specification, manufacturing, and assessment of precision optics. It presents an introduction to quality assurance (QA) practices required to identify, inspect, and measure optical components. Materials and tools found in an industrial optics fabrication and inspection shop are used in lecture demonstrations and laboratory experiments. Students will gain hands-on experience with these industrial materials and QA tools in the laboratory. Several course materials, particularly lecture slides, were created by Dr. Brian Monacelli.

Course Contents

Course materials are included in a Canvas .imscc file. The course syllabus is available to view as a sample file. The course is arranged according to the following sections: Administrivia and Resources, Optical Materials and Dispersion, Internal Features of Optical Materials, Optical Fabrication, Cleanliness, Midterm Exam, Optical Component Parameters, ISO 10110 Drawing Optical Components, and Oral Presentation and Final Exam.

The Administrivia and Resources section is composed of lecture slides, a syllabus, a bibliography, a glossary, three learning modules, and an assignment. The lecture slides provide an academic overview of optics at Pasadena City College. The syllabus is for the Fall 2020 semester and provides laboratory information, student learning outcomes, and a course outline.  The bibliography provides a list of resources on light and laser technologies. The glossary provides a list of light and laser terms. The three learning modules for the Quality Assurance of Precision Optics course explore the following areas: fabrication of precision optics, the characterization of optical materials and precision optics, and specifications and drawings for precision optics. The assignment is embedded in Canvas and assesses student knowledge of optical items in the real world. 

The Optical Materials and Dispersion section is composed of lecture slides, a lab, and a video. Lecture slides explore materials and dispersion. The lab covers dispersion and provides workplace scenarios, theory, hardware setup, the experimental procedure and data acquisition, and data reduction and analysis information. The video explores metals in glass.

The Internal Features of Optical Materials section is composed of lecture slides and a lab. Lecture slides explore internal features of optical instruments. The lab covers shadowgraphs.

The Optical Fabrication section is composed of lecture slides, labs, and a video. Lecture slides explore the following topics: optical glass fabrication, optical metal fabrication, optical ceramic fabrication, and optical polymer fabrication. The labs cover lap, grind, and polish and polarimetry. Labs include workplace scenarios, theory, hardware setup, the experimental procedure and data acquisition, and data reduction and analysis information. 

The Cleanliness section is composed of lecture slides and a lab. The lecture slides explore optical cleaning. The lab also explores optical cleaning and includes workplace scenarios, theory, hardware setup, the experimental procedure and data acquisition, and data reduction and analysis information. 

The Midterm Exam section is composed of a document with questions and answers for the midterm exam.

The Optical Component Parameters section is composed of lecture slides and labs. Lecture slides explore the following topics: optical components, surface shapes, mechanical parameters, optical parameters, and coatings. The labs cover diffraction, shop tools, coating checks, and scratch-dig inspection. Labs include workplace scenarios, theory, hardware setup, the experimental procedure and data acquisition, and data reduction and analysis information. 

The ISO 10110 Drawing Optical Components section is composed of lecture slides, labs, and an example document. Lecture slides explore ISO 10110. The labs cover drawing ISO 10110 and the optical fabrication process. Labs include workplace scenarios, theory, hardware setup, the experimental procedure and data acquisition, and data reduction and analysis information. The example document provides a drawing of a precision optical prism.

The Final Exam and Oral Presentation section is composed of instructions for the oral exam and the 3-page final exam, which includes various questions about optics, light, and lasers.

Below is a list of the folders, files, and links contained within the .imscc file. Content is arranged according to course section. Files are listed with their file name and size in parenthesis.

• Administrivia and Resources
  • Academic Overview Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture00 (academic overview).pdf 1.49 MB)
  • PCC LASR245 2020 Syllabus (LaserTech QAPO - PCC LASR245 syllabus 2020.docx 745 KB)
  • Bibliography (LaserTech QAPO - bibliography.docx 732 KB)
  • Glossary (NSF OP-TEC Quality Assurance of Precision Optics glossary.pdf 97.4 KB)
  • Module 1 (NSF OP-TEC Quality Assurance of Precision Optics module 1.pdf 4.83 MB)
  • Module 2 (NSF OP-TEC Quality Assurance of Precision Optics module 2.pdf 5 MB)
  • Module 3 (NSF OP-TEC Quality Assurance of Precision Optics module 3.pdf 2.2 MB)
  • Quality Assurance of Precision Optics - Welcome Assignment
• Optical Materials and Dispersion
  • Materials Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture01 (materials).pdf 2.63 MB)
  • Dispersion Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture02 (dispersion).pdf 842 KB)
  • Lab 01: Dispersion (LaserTech QAPO - lab01 (dispersion).docx 795 KB)
  • Video: Metals in glass are AWESOME!
• Internal Features of Optical Materials
  • Internal Features Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture03 (internal features).pdf 2.16 MB)
  • Lab 02: Shadowgraph (LaserTech QAPO - lab02 (shadowgraph).docx 801 KB)
• Optical Fabrication
  • Optical Glass Fabrication Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture04 (optical glass fabrication).pdf 1.46 MB)
  • Lab 03: Lap, Grind, Polish (LaserTech QAPO - lab03 (lap,grind,polish).docx 735 KB)
  • Video: Journey to Palomar
  • Optical Metal Fabrication Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture05 (optical metal fabrication).pdf 997 KB)
  • Optical Ceramic Fabrication Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture06 (optical ceramic fabrication).pdf 642 KB)
  • Optical Polymer Fabrication Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture07 (optical polymer fabrication).pdf 2.51 MB)
  • Lab 04: Polarimetry (LaserTech QAPO - lab04 (polarimetry).docx 948 KB)
• Cleanliness
  • Cleaning Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture08 (cleaning).pdf 1.76 MB)
  • Lab 05: Cleaning Optics (LaserTech QAPO - lab05 (cleaning).docx 734 KB)
• Midterm Exam
  • Midterm Exam (LaserTech QAPO - exam midterm.docx 738 KB)
• Optical Component Parameters
  • Optical Components Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture09 (optical components).pdf 8.08 MB)
  • Surface Shapes Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture10 (surface shapes.pdf 1020 KB)
  • Lab 06: Diffraction (LaserTech QAPO - lab06 (diffraction).docx 752 KB)
  • Mechanical Parameters Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO lecture11 (mechanical parameters).pdf 3.45 MB)
  • Lab 07: Shop Tools (LaserTech QAPO - lab07 (shop tools).docx 749 KB)
  • Optical Parameters Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture12 (optical parameters).pdf 798 KB)
  • Coatings Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture13 (coatings).pdf 3.03 MB)
  • Lab 08: Coating Check (LaserTech QAPO - lab08 (coating check).docx 772 KB)
  • Lab 09: Scratch-Dig Inspection (LaserTech QAPO - lab09 (scratch-dig).docx 753 KB)
• ISO 10110 Drawing Optical Components
  • ISO 10110 Lecture Slides (LaserTech QAPO - lecture14 (ISO10110).pdf 1.98 MB)
  • Lab 10: Draw ISO 10110
  • Lab 11: Optical Fabrication Process
  • Precision Optical Prism Drawing Example (Precision Optical prism revC.pdf 545 KB)
• Oral Presentation and Final Exam
  • Oral Presentation
  • Final Exam (LaserTech QAPO - exam final.docx 869 KB)