Innovative rapid liquid concentration measurement based on thermal lens effect and machine learning.

This study addresses the critical need for rapid and online measurement of liquid concentrations in industrial applications. Although the thermal lens effect (TLE) is extensively explored in laser systems for determining thermal lens focal lengths, its application in quantifying solution concentrations remains underexplored. This research explores the relationship between various liquid concentrations and the interference fringes induced by the TLE. A novel approach is introduced, utilizing TLE to measure solution concentrations, with integration of image processing and discrete Fourier transform (DFT) techniques for feature extraction from interference rings. Further, machine learning, specifically backpropagation artificial neural network (BP-ANN), is employed to model concentration measurement. The model demonstrates high accuracy, evidenced by low root mean square error (RMSE) values of 3.055 and 5.396 for the training and test sets, respectively. This enables precise, real-time determination of soy sauce concentration, offering significant implications for industrial testing, environmental monitoring, and other related fields.

Omnidirectional and near-unity nonreciprocal thermal radiation with trilayer cavities-enhanced approach.

From the standpoint of thermal radiation, omnidirectional nonreciprocal thermal radiation (NTR) is strongly desired for thermal energy harvesting. Here, we propose theoretically lithographic free thermal emitter made in a dielectric-Weyl semimetal (WSM)-dielectric fashion and terminated by a metallic substrate. By engineering the structural parameters, a surprising result of spectrally selective as well as omnidirectional (along both polar and azimuthal angles) NTR is realized. It is shown that the magnitude and sign of the contrast between emission (e) and absorption (α) can be managed simultaneously. The suggested structure shows good nonreciprocity stability in a wide range of polar and azimuthal angles for transverse magnetic (TM) polarized incident wave. The ability to fine tune nonreciprocal radiative properties of our design suggests a relatively simple way to manifest the NTR with high performance, which could lead to the development of power scavenging and conversion devices.

Lateral shifts of linearly- and radially-polarized Bessel beams scattered by a nanosphere.

We report the investigation on the lateral shifts that linearly-polarized (LP) and radially-polarized (RP) Bessel beams experience during the Mie scattering by a nanosphere. A numerical procedure based on the angular spectrum theory is developed to solve the scattered electromagnetic field and subsequent lateral shifts with a high computational efficiency, which can be easily applied to an arbitrary shaped polarized beam. The influences of different factors, including conical angle, nanosphere radius and position, on the lateral shifts are systematically investigated. The results demonstrate that for on-axis scattering, a LP Bessel beam can be regarded as a plane wave with the same polarization state but an equivalent longer wavelength, while a RP Bessel beam can be regarded as a plane wave with a polarization state along the propagation direction exhibiting independence on the conical angle. The findings help deepen our understandings of lateral shifts in light scattering of vectorial non-diffractive beams.

Machine-learning-based computationally efficient particle size distribution retrieval from bulk optical properties.

Retrieval of particle size distribution from bulk optical properties based on evolutionary algorithms is usually computationally expensive. In this paper, we report an efficient numerical approach to solving the inverse scattering problem by accelerating the calculation of bulk optical properties based on machine learning. With the assumption of spherical particles, the forward scattering by particles is first solved by Mie scattering theory and then approximated by machine learning. The particle swarm optimization algorithm is finally employed to optimize the particle size distribution parameters by minimizing the deviation between the target and simulated bulk optical properties. The accuracies of machine learning and particle swarm optimization are separately investigated. Meanwhile, both monomodal and bimodal size distributions are tested, considering the influences of random noise. Results show that machine learning is capable of accurately predicting the scattering efficiency for a specific size distribution in approximately 0.5 µs on a standalone computer. Therefore, the proposed method has the potential to serve as a powerful tool in real-time particle size measurement due to its advantages of simplicity and high efficiency.

Geometrical optics approximation for plane-wave scattering by a rectangular groove on a surface.

Rigorous solution of plane-wave scattering by a groove based on electromagnetic theory will be time-consuming if the groove width is much larger than the illumination wavelength. To accelerate the computation, an approach based on geometrical optics approximation is developed here. The incident beam is split into several parts during reflection and refraction. Contribution of every part is superposed to obtain the electric field at the interface between the groove and air, with which diffraction theory is utilized to calculate the far-field scattered light. Results demonstrate that the approach is capable of accurately calculating plane-wave scattering by rectangular grooves with large widths in a time-efficient manner, which can be beneficial for further inverse scattering problems.

Scattering of an Airy light sheet by a chiral sphere.

Scattering of a 1D Airy beam light sheet by a chiral sphere is numerically studied within Mie theory and the plane-wave spectrum method. To testify to the validity of our code and method, the results of scattering intensity of a chiral sphere by an Airy beam light sheet reducing to a homogeneous isotropic sphere are compared with those in existing literature, which shows that these results are in good agreement. Influences of different parameters on differential scattering cross sections in the far field are investigated in detail, including the chiral parameters, sphere radius, and beam position. It is found in the scattering intensity of an Airy beam by a chiral sphere that the chiral sphere, which is compared with a homogeneous isotropic sphere, can decrease the scattering intensity in a region, and the scattering intensity distribution is sensitive to the x0 position of the Airy beam.

Customized design and efficient fabrication of two freeform aluminum mirrors by single point diamond turning technique.

The precision single point diamond turning technique has been a promising technology for generating small and medium-sized freeform optical elements with high surface quality. In this paper, we present an extremely off-axis freeform optical system with a large 10.0 mm pupil diameter and a low 3.0 F-number over a wide 28° field of view. It is composed of two freeform aluminum mirrors, which are fabricated efficiently by the single point diamond turning machine. The manufacturing strategy and parameters are estimated rationally and comprehensively, based on the freeform surface characters. The freeform aluminum mirror surface can reach submicron surface accuracy and achieve nanometer surface roughness. The final assembled prototype of the off-axis two-mirror freeform display optical system has the advantages of compactness, a broad spectrum, and good display imaging performance.

Propagation of a Bessel-Gaussian beam in a gradient-index medium.

Based on the ABCD matrix method and Collins diffraction integral formula, analytical expression for Bessel-Gaussian beam propagation in a gradient-index medium is derived. The propagation trajectory, intensity, and phase distributions of the zeroth-order, second-order, and superposition cases are numerically investigated. The effect of beam waist radius w0 on the properties of beam propagation in a gradient-index medium is discussed in detail. The result shows that the beam is focused at z/L=N/2 (N=0,1,2,…) and propagates periodically in the medium. Evolution of the vortical structure of the superposed Bessel-Gaussian beam is investigated, showing that the superposed beam forms new singularities, and the rotation of the beam occurs mainly near the singularities.

[Two-photon ionization spectroscopy of methyl iodide in the region of 76 500-81 120 cm(-1)].

Using the device for ion velocity imaging, the laser frequency is doubling with the wavelength in the region of 492-523 nm, and the laser after frequency doubling was used as the light source. The ion spectrum of methyl iodide parent molecular (CH3 I+) in the range of 76 500-81 120 cm(-1) was obtained by the way of two-photon ionization, with a very high-resolution. The mechanisms of the methyl iodide molecule two-photon ionization were also described, the CH3 I+ spectrum obtained in the experiment was marked based on Rydberg formula and the quantum defect, the split arising from p series, d series and f series levels was also explained, and the spectral assignment showed that the two-photon ionization of methyl iodide molecule can not only be used to observe the reported characteristics of single photon ionization, but also can find some transitions which is forbidden in the single photon ionization, such as f series transitions.

Photoelectron imaging of atomic iodine following A-band photolysis of CH3I.

Photoionization of the iodine atom following methyl iodide A-band photodissociation was studied over the wavelength range of 245.5-261.6 nm by photoelectron imaging technique. Final state-specific speed and angular distributions of the photoelectron were recorded. Two types of the photoelectron resulted from ionizing the I atom from the photodissociation of CH3I were identified: (a) (2+1) REMPI of the ground state I atom, and (b) two-photon excitation of spin-orbit excited I(2P1/2) to autoionizing resonances converging to the 3P1 state of I+. In addition, some weaker signals were attributed to one-photon ionization of I atoms produced in some higher excited states from multiphoton ionization of CH3I followed by dissociation. Analysis of relative branching ratios to different levels of I+ (in case a) revealed that the final ion level distributions are generally dominated by the preservation of the ion-core configuration of the intermediate resonant state. A qualitative interpretation of the electron angular distribution from an autoionization process is also given.

[Highly sensitive tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy of CO2 around 1.31 microm].

Fifteen new absorption lines were observed when studying CO2 absorption spectroscopy by wavelength modulation (WM) technique with a DFB laser. The line intensity we can detect is 2.251 63 x 10(-27) cm(-1) x (moleculecm(-2))(-1) at 6.67 x 10(2) Pa pressure, corresponding to an absorbance of 3. 88 x 10(-8). The overtone spectra of CO2 around 1.31 microm have been measured with a tunable diode laser and the corresponding spectral parameters (positions, intensities, and self-broadening coefficients) are presented.

[The study of CO2 cavity enhanced absorption and highly sensitive absorption spectroscopy].

Cavity enhanced absorption spectroscopy (CEAS) is a new spectral technology that is based on the cavity ring down absorption spectroscopy. In the present paper, a DFB encapsulation narrow line width tunable diode laser (TDL) was used as the light source. At the center output, the TDL radiation wavelength was 1.573 microm, and an optical cavity, which consisted of two high reflectivity mirrors (near 1.573 microm, the mirror reflectivity was about 0.994%), was used as a sample cell. A wavemeter was used to record the accurate frequency of the laser radiation. In the experiment, the method of scanning the optical cavity to change the cavity mode was used, when the laser frequency was coincident with one of the cavity mode; the laser radiation was coupled into the optical cavity and the detector could receive the light signals that escaped the optical cavity. As a result, the absorption spectrum of carbon dioxide weak absorption at low pressure was obtained with an absorption intensity of 1.816 x 10(-23) cm(-1) x (molecule x cm(-2)(-1) in a sample cell with a length of only 33.5 cm. An absorption sensitivity of about 3.62 x 10(-7) cm(-1) has been achieved. The experiment result indicated that the cavity enhanced absorption spectroscopy has the advantage of high sensivity, simple experimental setup, and easy operation.

Size distribution of the secondary organic aerosol particles from the photooxidation of toluene.

In a smog chamber, the photooxidation of toluene was initiated by hydroxyl radical (OH*) under different experimental conditions. The size distribution of secondary organic aerosol(SOA) particles from the above reaction was measured using aerodynamic particle sizer spectrometer. It was found from our experimental results that the number of SOA particles increased with increasing the concentration of toluene. As the reaction time prolonged, the sum of SOA particles was also increased. After a reaction time of 130 min, the concentration of secondary organic aerosol particles would be kept constant at 2300 particles/cm3. Increasing illumination power of blacklamps could significantly induce a higher concentration of secondary organic aerosol particle. The density of SOA particles would also be increased with increasing concentration of CH3 ONO, however, it would be decreased as soon as the concentration of CH3 ONO was larger than 225.2 ppm. Nitrogen oxide with initial concentration higher than 30.1 ppm was also found to have little effect on the formation of secondary organic aerosol.