Accurate Scattering Measurements for Optical Engineers

Optical Solutions Editorial Team

Jul 27, 2021 / 2 min read

You’ve designed an optical system—now how can you measure its performance? What if there was an easy way to measure how light is reflected or transmitted in your system?

A surface’s appearance and optical performance depends greatly on how it scatters light

A surface’s appearance and optical performance depends greatly on how it scatters light 

Synopsys now offers solutions for measuring the light scattering properties of materials and surfaces. You can measure how light interacts with a given surface or how light behaves in the volume of a solid. You can then simulate the results in LightTools illumination design software.

Applications include diffusive films and reflectors for general lighting, paints for automotive and displays, mirrors and black scatterers for aerospace, and phosphors.

Many of the optical systems we use daily rely on surface or volume scattering to function properly

Many of the optical systems we use daily rely on surface or volume scattering to function properly

equip your facility with robust and portable optical scattering measurement hardware

To equip your facility with robust and portable optical scattering measurement hardware, choose the Mini-Diff V2 or Mini-Diff VPro, which measures your optical samples and imports the data into optical software for high-accuracy product simulations. We also offer a standalone goniophometer instrument─ the REFLET 180S optical bench — that is easy to use for high resolution and high dynamic range characterizations.

If you don’t need or want to have in-house scattering-measurement capabilities, we have a laboratory that is light- and temperature-controlled to provide an optimal measurement environment.

On-demand optical measurements services lab | Synopsys

We offer on-demand measurement services to characterize any surface or sample. In addition to the measurement devices we offer for purchase, our lab includes a high-specular bench that is well suited for backward and forward light scatter characterization for very glossy materials and objects such as coatings or mirrors for the space industry. The system measures BRDF (bidirectional reflectance distribution function) and BTDF (bidirectional transmittance distribution function), which perfectly represents the way any surface scatters incoming light in 2D space.

Want to deliver automotive lighting products to market faster? The Synopsys SmartStart Library provides designers with light scatter data for faster, more cost-effective product development. The SmartStart Library is a curated database of optical data for glasses, plastics, and surface finishes commonly used in the design of automotive lighting systems. We continuously augment our SmartStart Library to expand customer access to precision light scattering data for faster, physics-based system modeling.

With our scattering measurement solutions, optical engineers have access to accurate data for optical simulations, enabling them, and gain greater control over the quality of their products.

To request a demo, quote, or evaluation of our optical scattering measurement solutionscontact us today.

Resources