I am trying to simulate the powell lens and I imported the lens from a CAD file from the vendor. However, in my simulation the output does not seem to be a line and in the detector viewer there is a discontinuity in the middle, does anyone know how to solve this? I think the ray entering the lens in the middle should not be bent, but in the layout it is still bent to an angle. Thanks!

How does OpticStudio account for the thicknesses introduced by tolerancing? If a thickness after a surface increases, does the entire system get longer, or does the next thickness get shorter?

Is there a way to customize the shortcuts that are available in the toolbar?

OpticStudio's tool to export point clouds creates a lens.pcd file. The 11 first lines are information about the file structure, then followed by the points. # .PCD v0.7 - Point Cloud Data file format VERSION 0.7 FIELDS x y z SIZE 4 4 4 TYPE F F F COUNT 1 1 1 WIDTH 100 HEIGHT 100 VIEWPOINT 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 POINTS 10000 DATA ascii Could someone fill in the blanks? VERSION    ->    Tool Version Number FIELDS       ->    Order of Coordinates SIZE           ->    ? TYPE          ->    Number Type? In this case Float? COUNT       ->    ? WIDTH        ->    Number of Data Points along the Width? HEIGHT       ->    Number of Data Points along the Height? VIE

Hi All,  for a tolerance analysis of an optical system in Zemax (Version June 24, 2015) I’m using a tolerance script where tolerances are consecutively perturbed and performance is optimized by optimization with specific merit functions. Is it possible to perturb in addition to surface and parameter data also refractive index and dispersion tolerances by using the keyword “PERTURB” in a tolerance script? If not, which approach should be used for individual perturbation of glass tolerances?  Thank You in advance for a feedback, Best regards, Johann      

I am designing a system to an MTF specification, why can’t I just use the MTF operands in my merit function from the start?

What does OpticStudio do to optimize for increased yield when that is selected as the optimization goal?  

Hi all, I think I'm stuck on a problem of interpretation of results, and maybe someone can illuminate me. After performing a tolerance analysis with RMS wavefront, if I open the MC_XXX.zmx file and compare the results at the Wavefront map, the value shown for RMS Wavefront Error does not match the estimated value at the tolerance summary tab. Let's take for example MC_Worst, which in my case is run # 254, which has a value of 6.312 waves: Then, when opening MC_0254.zmx, and going to the Wavefront Map, I get 0.2353 waves, as show in the following screencap:   Notice that for the tolerance analysis the TWAV operand is set at 0.6328, and I'm using the same wavelength at the wavefront map. Is there any conversion between the RMS wavefront of the tolerance analysis and the RMS value from the Wavefront Map? Could it be an incorrect setting of the tolerance analysis?  I appreciate your comments on this. Thanks, José

I have trouble using Opto Studio on my new good HP laptop. Many plots, such as 3D-OPD, did not show correctly. I guess this is due to the graphic card in my computer. Is there any solution for this?

Hello, I'm using Zemax OpticStudio 18.4.1 Premium in the non-sequential mode. My optical system consists of a light source (source radial) with 2 wavelengths and 1e5 beams, 2 detectors (rectangular) and a bulk scatterer (volume physics -> angle scattering) with wavelength shift. So far it is working as I would expect it. But when it comes to ray analysis there are some, at least to me, miraculous things happening. I saved a ray file (polarization, scattering and ray splitting on) and tried to use filter strings in the path analysis window. At first sight it seemed to work but only on the first sight. For example, I tried to get only the beams with wavelength shift. So I used 'X_WAVESHIFT(1,2)' and I got a result. In addition I tried 'X_WAVESHIFT(1,2) & H9' (Object 9 is the one with the bulk scattering properties; the only one in the system) and I got a different result (smaller power). How is that possible? The same thing happens if I use the strings directly in the detector wi

Hello, I am currently optimizing a camera lens for as-built performance, and this has required me to use the TOLR operand for optimizing for as-built performance. However, I am wondering if more than one TOLR operand can be used? As of now, I have been optimizing with the TOLR Data = 2 (estimated as-built performance), and the TOLR value right now is 0.100 RMS WFE, with the nominal WFE being 0.058. If I were to add a second TOLR operand with Data = 0 (estimated change in RMS WFE) to use concurrently with the first with the same weighting as the first TOLR operand, would this help at all with reducing both the total as-built estimate and the estimated change, thereby improving production yield? Or would it just give OpticStudio more to compute and not work as intended?   Thanks!

The attached file shows a wavefront with 'spiders' from a telescope. These spiders require a very high pupil resolution for a well converging PSF calculation. But I need to calculate a huge number of PSFs and have to restrict the pupil sampling because of computing time. Is there a possibility for 'Edge Smoothing' in Zemax? I mean a kind of 'apodization' of the spiders that yields a smooth transition from bright to dark that improves the convergence? Additionally: The spiders and the inner obscuration are (as usual in telescopes) not in the plain of the aperture stop. Is the Zemax PSF calculation (FFT or Huygens) still valid?  

I would like to know how to perform simulation of light in optical fiber at physics optics.

Dear Zemax Community, I'm currently working from home using Zemax ia VPN and Microsoftr Remote Desktop (RDP). Whether RDP is interrupted by a lapse in internet, or is closed manunally, Zemax enters a state of high CPU and GPU utilization in which it is completely non-responsive  to mouse or keyboard input. I must force-close and redo actions like Monte Carlo simulations. Other applications on the much faster computer located at work continue to run, and allow me to use them when I return from the RDP interruption.  Has anyone else in this forum experienced this? And is there a known fix? Note: I'm running Zemax OpticStudio version 20.1 with a hardkey license. 

Hi all, I work for Bitron and I use OS in non-sequential environment to simulate illumination on visible switch on cockpit, etc. Many LED manufacturers supply Ray files in formats other than the Zemax Optic Studio format. Can anyone direct me to converters or practices to get usable ray files from OPticStudio? Thanks

I would appreciate some help on how to use the MTF operands. In the 'Optimizing for MTF' help page I can read the following: Note that if you use both MTFT and MTFS (or GMTT and GMTS) for the same field and wavelength data, they should be placed on adjacent lines in the editor; otherwise, the MTF is computed twice. which does not mention 'same frequency' as requirement for ZOS to compute the MTF only once for adjacent lines. But in the 'MTF Data' help page (MTFA operand description) I can find the following: Because only a single spatial frequency is required, the method of computation used by the MTF operands is different, and generally much faster, than the algorithm used by the analysis feature. which makes me believe the 'adjacent lines' trick works only if the adjacent operands are computed at the same frequency. Please can you clarify this to me? Thank you. Furthermore on this topic, is there a way to retrieve the MTFT value from the MECT value? I'm optimizing for co

Is it possible to use the ReadZRDData etc. functions of the RayTrace.dll or ZRDLoaderFull.dll in Python? How?

In the Physical Optics Propagation, how can I compute the divergence of the beam ? Is there a POPD operand data?

How should you choose the number of rings and arms necessary for Gaussian Quadrature? When would you use a rectangular array instead?

How can I apply a ray filter to the rays I want to export to STEP (CAD) in non-sequential mode?

Hello all! Is there an oppertunity to create a rotating domain in zemax, for example for checking sagnac interferometer in different rotating domain velocities?  thanks!!

Usually, the system aperture is the first parameter defined when starting a new design. The system aperture not only defines the size of the beam which ZEMAX will trace through the optical system, but it also determines the initial direction cosines of the rays launched from each field point in the Object plane. Entrance Pupil Diameter is perhaps the most commonly used system aperture type. In ZEMAX, the EPD is defined as the diameter of the pupil in lens units as seen from object space. That is, axial rays at the object appears to enter the system entrance pupil.

How are the working f/# and image space f/# different?

What does the column “chip zone” in the Lens Data editor control?

Hi there, I am thinking of modeling a specific deformation on a mirror in my set up to help develope a pass/fail criteria. I have an interferogram (Zygo image) but I cannot make it into a Zernike model (it is rectangular), I will have to estimate and approximate the shape of the mirror by the data given. Attached an example. I can convert the profile cross-section (marked with red arrow) from fringes to microns, that should not be a problem. My question is: what non sequential object would you recommend that I’ll use for the mirror? Thanks!