Optics Courses

What is the Field of Optics?

Optics is a branch of physics that studies the properties of light. The science of optics includes studies in photonics, fiber optics, and even x-rays as they exhibit the same features as those of light waves. Optical systems inform many fields of research, and their properties could unlock new products and methods in healthcare, energy, and production. Scientists who study light sources sometimes focus on the physical properties of light, but they also may study the experimental fields of quantum optics to explain the behavior of these subatomic particles. As light travels, it behaves as both particle and wave. Light rays can be used and manipulated for a variety of uses, including eyeglasses, laser beams, or other optical instruments. Even digital cameras use light to create images, and holograms could soon use light to change the way we experience our surroundings.

Learn About Optics

Getting into the world of Optics opens you up to a career in a variety of fields, both in research and in product development. The use of light to create virtual images, alter existing images, and build new products that make use of light's properties. EdX.org offers courses and certifications in the field of optics in partnership with leaders in the field. You'll have the chance to study research and innovation happening in the field in preparation for a career. You'll have the opportunity to build skills you can apply to your research or career.

Optics Courses and Certifications

MIT offers quite a few courses on the edX platform in Materials Science. The series provides an overview not only of optics but also electromagnetic materials. You'll learn about the propagation of light and behaviors like refracting. Tutorials for optics processes help you build your understanding of this aspect of Materials Sciences. Rice University offers a more detailed overview of optics in Waves and Optics. It outlines waves on strings, oscillators, and electromagnetic waves. It's a more in-depth overview of the field designed to follow introductory physics courses.

Explore a Career Using Optics

Research and development use the properties of light to build newer, faster products. Because our visual perception depends on interpretations of light, and light behaves in ways that could unlock the secrets to better quantum computing, knowledge of Optics basics could help position you at the forefront of this research field. edX can help get you on the path with an understanding of Physics and Materials Science. The courses, developed with leading institutions, can build your expertise for a rewarding career.