ZEMAX Users' Knowledge Base - Articles -

How to Show Detector Volume Data in 3-D

no@spam.com (Mike Tocci) — Fri, 30 May 2008 09:00:00 PDT

The Detector Volume object in ZEMAX is a very useful tool for detecting light inside a volume. It uses volume pixels, or voxels, to detect light. However, the ZEMAX interface currently�allows these voxels to be viewed only in 2-D planes. This article will show you how to use ZEMAX to create intricate CAD models of the voxels in a Detector Volume, and a sample ZPL macro is given at the end of this article for use in creating these CAD models automatically.

Quantifying Veiling Glare

no@spam.com (Mike Tocci) — Fri, 25 May 2007 00:00:00 PDT

Veiling glare is a term that is often used in the field of imaging system design. Technically, veiling glare is stray light that reaches the sensor plane of an imaging system, and it can cause a decrease in the imaging system’s performance.

Often, �a full non-sequential treatment is needed for accurate results. However, for many optical imaging systems, a first-cut look at forward scattering effects is all that is really required. This article will show how to make just such a preliminary veiling glare measurement using tools that are already built into ZEMAX. This analysis will require just a few minutes to perform, and will give very useful results.

How to Model the Human Eye in ZEMAX

no@spam.com (Mike Tocci) — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 00:00:00 PDT

In this article, we will create model of a human eye in ZEMAX using the Liou & Brennan 1997 eye model. After successfully generating this eye model in ZEMAX, we will use it to design a free-form progressive eyeglass lens.

Demystifying the Off-Axis Parabola Mirror

no@spam.com (Mike Tocci) — Thu, 29 Jun 2006 00:00:00 PDT

An off-axis parabolic (OAP) mirror consists of a small section cut out� from a larger, so-called �parent� parabolic mirror. Working with these mirrors, especially for the first time, can seem like a daunting task.� However, with a little instruction and a bit of practice, OAPs can be fairly straightforward to manipulate and very handy to use.

This article describes a real-life assignment that required an OAP to be used with an existing optical system

Modeling Frustrated Total Internal Reflection in Non-Sequential Mode

no@spam.com (Mike Tocci) — Tue, 18 Apr 2006 00:00:00 PDT

This article describes how to model evanescent field effects like frustrated total internal reflection in ZEMAX. This is useful in applications like fingerprint scanners.