Turn an optical design into hardware that still performs when gravity, temperature, vibration, manufacturing tolerances, and the real world begin working against it.
Optomechanics Handbook provides a comprehensive foundation in the mechanical design of optical systems, connecting structural engineering, thermal design, materials, precision mechanics, and optical performance in one practical reference.
Designed for engineers, students, researchers, optical-system designers, and technical professionals, the book explains how to hold lenses, mirrors, prisms, filters, detectors, and complete optical assemblies precisely where the optical prescription requires them-and keep them there from the laboratory bench to demanding field and flight environments.
Inside, you will learn how to:
- Select optical and structural materials using stiffness, mass, thermal expansion, and stability criteria
- Design kinematic and semi-kinematic mounts without harmful overconstraint
- Mount lenses, mirrors, prisms, windows, filters, and large lightweight optics
- Control thermal expansion, gradients, vibration, resonance, and gravity sag
- Build tolerance budgets and translate optical requirements into mechanical tolerances
- Apply passive and active athermalization techniques
- Analyze mount-induced stress, birefringence, and wavefront error
- Use finite element analysis and structural-optical workflows to predict performance
- Design flexures, precision stages, actuators, bearings, and motion systems
- Engineer hardware for contamination control, cryogenic operation, launch loads, vacuum, and extreme environments
- Plan alignment, environmental testing, verification, manufacturability, and integration
The book moves from first principles to complete system-level practice, including case studies involving telescope mirror cells, spaceborne imaging instruments, compact optical modules, and laser systems.
Build optical hardware that performs outside the computer model-add this practical optomechanics reference to your engineering library today.