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This book discusses statistical methods that are useful for treating problems in modern optics, and the application of these methods to solving a variety of such problems This book covers a variety of statistical problems in optics, including both theory and applications. The text covers the necessary background in statistics, statistical properties of light waves of various types, the theory of partial coherence and its applications, imaging with partially coherent light, atmospheric degradations of images, and noise limitations in the detection of light. New topics have been introduced in the second edition, including: Analysis of the Vander Pol oscillator model of laser light Coverage on coherence tomography and coherence multiplexing of fiber sensors An expansion of the chapter on imaging with partially coherent light, including several new examples An expanded section on speckle and its properties New sections on the cross-spectrum and bispectrum techniques for obtaining images free from atmospheric distortions A new section on imaging through atmospheric turbulence using coherent light The addition of the effects of “read noise” to the discussions of limitations encountered in detecting very weak optical signals A number of new problems and many new references have been added Statistical Optics, Second Edition is written for researchers and engineering students interested in optics, physicists and chemists, as well as graduate level courses in a University Engineering or Physics Department.

The field of optics has been accelerating at an unprecedented rate, due both to the tremendous growth of the field of fiber-optic communications, and to the improvement of optical materials and devices. Throughput capabilities of fiber systems are accelerating faster than Moore's law, the famous growth rate of silicon chip capability, which has propelled that industry relentlessly over decades. In addition, new optical storage techniques push the limits of information density, with an ever decreasing cost per bit of storage. Economic investment in photonics is at an all-time high. At the same time, other fields of optics, adaptive optics for instance, are bringing new capabilities to more classical applications such as astronomical imaging. New lasers continue to be developed, with applications in display, sensing, and biomedicine following at ever-shorter intervals after the initial discoveries. Given this background, the NATO Mediterranean Dialog Advanced Research Workshop on Unconventional Optical Elements for Information Storage, Processing and Communications, held in Israel on October 19-21, 1998, came at an opportune moment in the history of optics. Its aim was to overview the current state-of-the-art and encourage cooperation in the Mediterranean region, with a view to highlighting and enhancing the existing potential for further development and innovation. The workshop included participants from Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Morocco, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom and USA.

International Trends in Optics provides a broad view of work in the field of optics throughout the world. Topics range from quantum optoelectronics for optical processing to optics in telecommunications, along with microoptics, optical memories, and fiber-optic signal processing. Holographic optical elements for use with semiconductor lasers are also considered. Comprised of 34 chapters, this book begins with an introduction to some of the practical applications of integrated optical circuits, optoelectronic integrated circuits, and photonic integrated circuits. Subsequent chapters deal with quantum optoelectronics for optical processing; fiber-optic signal processing; holographic optical elements for use with semiconductor lasers; potential uses of photorefractives; and adaptive interferometry that makes use of photorefractive crystals. Water wave optics and diffraction are also examined, together with the essential journals of optics and the opposition effect in volume and surface scattering. The final chapter is devoted to optical computing, with emphasis on its processing functions and architecture. This monograph will be of interest to students, practitioners, and researchers in physics and electronics.