In
physics
Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...
, coherence theory is the study of
optical effects arising from partially
coherent
Coherence is, in general, a state or situation in which all the parts or ideas fit together well so that they form a united whole.
More specifically, coherence, coherency, or coherent may refer to the following:
Physics
* Coherence (physics ...
light and radio sources. Partially coherent sources are sources where the
coherence time
For an electromagnetic wave, the coherence time is the time over which a propagating wave (especially a laser or maser beam) may be considered coherent, meaning that its phase is, on average, predictable.
In long-distance transmission systems ...
or
coherence length are limited by
bandwidth
Bandwidth commonly refers to:
* Bandwidth (signal processing) or ''analog bandwidth'', ''frequency bandwidth'', or ''radio bandwidth'', a measure of the width of a frequency range
* Bandwidth (computing), the rate of data transfer, bit rate or thr ...
, by thermal noise, or by other effect. Many aspects of modern coherence theory are studied in
quantum optics
Quantum optics is a branch of atomic, molecular, and optical physics and quantum chemistry that studies the behavior of photons (individual quanta of light). It includes the study of the particle-like properties of photons and their interaction ...
.
The theory of partial coherence was awoken in the 1930s due to work by
Pieter Hendrik van Cittert and
Frits Zernike
Frits Zernike (; 16 July 1888 – 10 March 1966) was a Dutch physicist who received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1953 for his invention of the phase-contrast microscope.
Early life and education
Frederick "Frits" Zernike was born on 16 July ...
.
Topics in coherence theory
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Mutual coherence function
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See also
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Nonclassical light
In optics, nonclassical light is light
Light, visible light, or visible radiation is electromagnetic radiation that can be visual perception, perceived by the human eye. Visible light spans the visible spectrum and is usually defined as h ...
*
Optical coherence tomography
Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a high-resolution imaging technique with most of its applications in medicine and biology. OCT uses coherent near-infrared light to obtain micrometer-level depth resolved images of biological tissue or oth ...
References
*
Eugene Hecht and Alfred Zajac, ''Optics'', (1974) Addison-Wesley Publishing, Reading, Massachusetts . ''(Chapter 12 provides an undergraduate level introduction.)''
Interferometry
Physical optics
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