17-Phys-A7 Optics
Worked solutions to 6 past sittings (2013–2018), 44 questions. Pick a sitting, or start from a topic below.
Topics across the sittings
Topics that come up in more than one sitting, taken from the headings of our worked solutions. A topic counts once per sitting.
- Short concept questions (5 sittings): December 2018 Q1 · December 2016 Q1 · May 2016 Q1 · May 2015 Q1 · December 2013 Q1
- Modal dispersion (4 sittings): December 2018 Q2 · December 2016 Q5 · December 2013 Q5 · Undated paper Q2
- TE/TM plane waves (3 sittings): December 2016 Q4 · May 2016 Q4 · May 2015 Q3
- Galilean telescope (2 sittings): May 2016 Q3 · May 2015 Q2
- Grating diffraction (2 sittings): December 2016 Q2 · May 2016 Q2
- Polarization (2 sittings): December 2013 Q4 · Undated paper Q4
- Polarizers (2 sittings): December 2018 Q4 · May 2015 Q5
- Quarter-wave plate (2 sittings): May 2016 Q6 · December 2013 Q4
- Rayleigh resolution (2 sittings): December 2016 Q2 · May 2016 Q2
- Single-slit (2 sittings): December 2016 Q2 · May 2016 Q2
- System matrix (2 sittings): December 2018 Q8 · Undated paper Q7
- Thin-lens ray tracing (2 sittings): May 2015 Q2 · December 2013 Q2
- Two-beam interference (2 sittings): May 2016 Q4 · May 2015 Q3
Questions by sitting
December 2018
- Question 1: Definitions and short concept questions
- Question 2: Step-index multimode optical fiber — NA and modal dispersion
- Question 3: Fresnel/Fraunhofer diffraction and aperture patterns
- Question 4: Polarizers, Malus's law, and photoelasticity
- Question 5: A practical light source — structure, operation, applications
- Question 6: Diffraction-grating spectroscopy of hydrogen emission lines
- Question 7: Thin-lens imaging — ray diagram and matrix optics
- Question 8: Astronomical telescope — aperture stop, system matrix, resolving power
- Question 9: Two-source interference and the Michelson interferometer
- Question 10: Thin-film interference in a glass plate
December 2016
- Question 1: Definitions and short concept questions
- Question 2: Single-slit and grating diffraction, aperture spreading, Rayleigh resolution
- Question 3: Apparent depth, ray-transfer matrix arrays, and a two-lens system
- Question 4: TE/TM plane waves, interference fringes, and refraction of the fringe pattern
- Question 5: Optical-fibre attenuation, Rayleigh scattering, modal dispersion, and numerical aperture
- Question 6: Thin-film antireflection coating, normal and oblique incidence
May 2016
- Question 1: Definitions and short concept questions
- Question 2: Single-slit and grating diffraction, Airy disk, Rayleigh resolution
- Question 3: Ray trace through a glass cube, full-length mirror, Galilean telescope
- Question 4: TE/TM plane waves and two-beam interference
- Question 5: Fresnel reflection/transmission at an air–water interface
- Question 6: Three polarizers, a quarter-wave plate, and a birefringent retarder
May 2015
- Question 1: Definitions and short concept questions
- Question 2: Thin-lens ray tracing and a Galilean telescope
- Question 3: TE/TM plane waves and two-beam interference
- Question 4: Fresnel reflection/transmission at a water surface
- Question 5: Polarizers and a mica retardation plate
- Question 6: Diffraction gratings, double slit, and resolution
December 2013
- Question 1: Definitions and short concept questions
- Question 2: Thin-lens ray tracing and a telescope graticule
- Question 3: Design of a 0.5 m sodium-D monochromator
- Question 4: Polarization, a quarter-wave plate, and Fresnel reflection at a water surface
- Question 5: Fibre attenuation, modal dispersion and a symbolic dispersion derivation
- Question 6: Diffraction-limited focal spot, a two-wavelength double slit, an anti-reflection coating, and a moving mirror
Undated paper
- Question 1: Short concept & definition questions
- Question 2: Step-index multimode fiber — ray angles and modal dispersion
- Question 3: Fresnel vs. Fraunhofer diffraction from a rectangular aperture
- Question 4: Polarization — sunglasses, Jones matrices
- Question 5: Optical detector — the PIN photodiode
- Question 6: Photons and atomic absorption/emission lines
- Question 7: Expanded-beam fiber coupler — system matrix (choice with Q8)
- Question 8: Ball-lens fiber coupler — refractive index (choice with Q7)
- Question 9: Newton’s rings (choice with Q10)
- Question 10: Air-wedge thin-film fringes (choice with Q9)