The Detector Revolution

The all new version 2023.1 of the fast physical optics modeling and design software has finally arrived. And with it come lots of new features. One we want to particularly highlight is the new Universal Detector and the evolution it brings with it in terms of detector modeling. This new element replaces the Electromagnetic Field Detector and like its predecessor, can display any field component in x- and k-domain. Furthermore, with its inclusion of customizable add-ons, this detector allows for utmost flexibility, as any physical value can be calculated from the provided field information, directly.

Hence, for this week’s newsletter, we present you an in-depth look into the Universal Detector, as well as an application example in the form of an aspherical focusing system. In this optical setup we display the field (including the phase distribution), calculate the energy density of the focus and investigate the change in the spot size as the beam travels through its focal region. With our new detector concept, this all can be carried out with the same detector.