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Development of an Automated Modern Undergraduate Optics Laboratory using LabVIEW

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Abstract

We report here the development of an automated modern optics laboratory for undergraduate students. This developed modern optics laboratory have automated experiments on optoelectronic device characterisation, optical instrumentation, CCD based optical experiments and advanced applications in optics. In the device characterisation section, Voltage-Current (V-I) and Optical Power-Current (P-I) characteristics of various optoelectronic devices like LEDs, Laser diodes and photo diodes have been automated. In the optical instrumentation section, development of PC based optical power meter have been reported whose functionality can be tailored as per the need of the designed experiment. In the CCD based optical experiments section, CCD has been integrated for fringe capture and analysis by studying the diffraction pattern of a pinhole. In the advanced applications in optics section, molar absorbivity of NiSO4 has been calculated. Further work is in progress to develop heart rate monitoring system, non-evasive jaundice studies from the skin, CCD based real time spectrometers as well as elaborate studies on interference, diffraction and polarisation. The automation of this laboratory has been done by integrating various sensors (photodetectors, CCDs, Current and others) with data acquisition cards connected to PC and one of the most widely used world wide scientific graphical programming software LabVIEW. The purpose of the laboratory is to invoke student interest by exposing them to various modern tools in comparison to very conventional as well as boring existing optics laboratories. The use of this scientific graphical programming software will help in performing various real time measurements and calculations with ease. The automation of the experiments will also save great amount of experimentation time and procurement of costly equipments dedicated to each experiment thus providing an efficient way to carry out studies with reduced financial constraints and better manoeuvrability.

© 2009 Optical Society of America

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