Apparatus and methods for fluorescence imaging using radiofrequency multiplexed excitation. One apparatus splits an excitation laser beam into two arms of a Mach-Zehnder interferometer. The light in the first beam is frequency shifted by an acousto-optic deflector, which is driven by a phase-engineered radiofrequency comb designed to minimize peak-to-average power ratio. This RF comb generates multiple deflected optical beams possessing a range of output angles and frequency shifts. The second beam is shifted in frequency using an acousto-optic frequency shifter. After combining at a second beam splitter, the two beams are focused to a line on the sample using a conventional laser scanning microscope lens system. The acousto-optic deflectors frequency-encode the simultaneous excitation of an entire row of pixels, which enables detection and de-multiplexing of fluorescence images using a single photomultiplier tube and digital phase-coherent signal recovery techniques.

A laser projection system is provided that includes at least one pickoff element or pickoff interface that redirects a portion of input laser light toward one or more photodetectors for purposes such as laser output power monitoring. An interface of a given pickoff element or a given pickoff interface uses Fresnel reflection to redirect the input laser light. The Fresnel reflection occurs due to a difference in indices of refraction between two materials that meet to form that interface. In some embodiments, a pickoff element is disposed in an optical path between a beam combiner and an optical scanner of the system. The pickoff element can be a plate beamsplitter, a cube beamsplitter, or a prism. In some embodiments, at least one pickoff interface is provided between two or more substrates of the beam combiner, the substrates that form a given pickoff interface having different respective indices of refraction.

A method of operating an apparatus for laser annealing, includes reducing temporal or spatial coherency of a plurality of laser beams by beam superimposing; and reducing an electric field inner product magnitude of beams having the reduced temporal or spatial coherency by a fly eye lens array to reduce coherency, and/or by modifying a polarization state between the beams by beam superimposing.

An optical detector system provides beam positioning data to an optical tracking system to facilitate optical communications. The optical detector system comprises a plurality of optical photodetectors. For example, a two-by-two array may be used. Incoming light passes through one or more optical elements, such as a lens and a dispersive optical element. A first portion of the beam entering the optical elements is directed into a first spot having a first area on the array. A second portion of the beam entering the optical elements is dispersed to form a second spot having a second area on the array that is larger than the first area. This combination of first portion and second portion of the beam incident on the array provides unambiguous information in the output of the photodetectors that is indicative of a position of the incoming beam with respect to the array.

An optical detector system provides beam positioning data to an optical tracking system to facilitate optical communications. The optical detector system comprises a plurality of optical photodetectors. For example, a two-by-two array may be used. Incoming light passes through one or more optical elements, such as a lens and a dispersive optical element. A first portion of the beam entering the optical elements is directed into a first spot having a first area on the array. A second portion of the beam entering the optical elements is dispersed to form a second spot having a second area on the array that is larger than the first area. This combination of first portion and second portion of the beam incident on the array provides unambiguous information in the output of the photodetectors that is indicative of a position of the incoming beam with respect to the array.

A polychromator system comprising: an optical element defining an aperture; a collimation mirror for receiving light via the aperture and reflecting substantially collimated light; at least a first dispersive optical component and a second dispersive optical component, each configured to disperse the substantially collimated light received from the collimation mirror by different amounts for different wavelengths and to provide cross-dispersed light having different wavelengths of light spaced along a first and second axis; and a focus mirror positioned to focus the cross-dispersed light onto a 2-D array detector to provide a plurality of aperture images of the aperture at a respective plurality of regions of the detector, each of the plurality of aperture images associated with a respective wavelength of the cross-dispersed light. Either one or both of the collimation mirror and the focus mirror is a freeform mirror having a reflective surface configured to mitigate effects of optical aberrations of the polychromator system over a plurality of the wavelengths of the cross-dispersed light along the first axis and the second axis and thereby optimise the resolution of the plurality of aperture images associated with the plurality of the wavelengths along the first axis and the second axis.

A method and an apparatus for collecting powder samples in real-time in powder bed fusion additive manufacturing may involves an ingester system for in-process collection and characterizations of powder samples. The collection may be performed periodically and uses the results of characterizations for adjustments in the powder bed fusion process. The ingester system of the present disclosure is capable of packaging powder samples collected in real-time into storage containers serving a multitude purposes of audit, process adjustments or actions.

There is provided an optical device, including an input aperture, an output aperture, at least first and second light-transmitting substrates each having two major surfaces and edges, an input surface for coupling light waves into the substrate for effecting total internal reflection inside the substrate, and an output surface for coupling light waves out of the substrate, a major surface of the first substrate is attached to a major surface of the second substrate and the input surface of the first substrate is a partially reflecting surface, such that part of the light waves passing through the input aperture is partially reflected by the partially reflecting input surface and coupled into the first substrate and another part passes through the partially reflecting input surface and is coupled by the input surface of the second substrate into the second substrate.

Metasurface elements, integrated systems incorporating such metasurface elements with light sources and/or detectors, and methods of the manufacture and operation of such optical arrangements and integrated systems are provided. Systems and methods for integrating transmissive metasurfaces with other semiconductor devices or additional metasurface elements, and more particularly to the integration of such metasurfaces with substrates, illumination sources and sensors are also provided. The metasurface elements provided may be used to shape output light from an illumination source or collect light reflected from a scene to form two unique patterns using the polarization of light. In such embodiments, shaped-emission and collection may be combined into a single co-designed probing and sensing optical system.

Metasurface elements, integrated systems incorporating such metasurface elements with light sources and/or detectors, and methods of the manufacture and operation of such optical arrangements and integrated systems are provided. Systems and methods for integrating transmissive metasurfaces with other semiconductor devices or additional metasurface elements, and more particularly to the integration of such metasurfaces with substrates, illumination sources and sensors are also provided. The metasurface elements provided may be used to shape output light from an illumination source or collect light reflected from a scene to form two unique patterns using the polarization of light. In such embodiments, shaped-emission and collection may be combined into a single co-designed probing and sensing optical system.