Optiland v0.5.8 Release Notes

v0.5.8 acts as a targeted update focusing on geometry flexibility, expanded import capabilities, and visualization enhancements. This release introduces generalized phase interaction models, grid sag geometry, and versatile 2D layout options, alongside key improvements to material handling and the Zemax reader.

🧩 Geometry & Physics Modeling

Generalized Phase Interaction Models

Expanded the interaction model framework to allow the application of arbitrary phase profiles on any surface type, significantly increasing design flexibility for diffractive and hybrid systems.

Grid Sag Geometry

Added support for Grid Sag surfaces, enabling the definition of surface sags based on interpolated grid data.

Toroidal Surface Support

Implemented support for toroidal surfaces within the Zemax reader, expanding compatibility with imported legacy designs.

🔭 Analysis & Visualization

2D Layout Projections

Added the ability to plot 2D system layouts with selectable projections. Users can now visualize systems in YZ, XZ, and XY planes.

New Apodization Types

Introduced additional apodization profiles for more complex source modeling, including Super Gaussian, Cosine Squared, and more.

Backend-Agnostic Huygens PSF

Refactored the Huygens Point Spread Function calculation to be fully backend-agnostic, improving compatibility across computation modes.

⚙️ Core & Stability Improvements

Material System Enhancements

• Efficiency: Optimized object handling to avoid creating multiple copies of material objects.
• Equality Testing: Enabled direct equality testing for material instances.
• Extinction Coefficients: The Abbe material model now returns an array for extinction coefficients.

Zemax Reader Fixes

Resolved a float vs aperture error when reading specific Zemax file configurations, ensuring smoother imports.

Refactoring & Maintenance

• Refactored geometry configuration files for better maintainability.
• Added a stop_index setter and logic to disallow second object surfaces for cleaner system definitions.
• General documentation updates, testing coverage expansion, and minor bug fixes.

Summary

Optiland v0.5.8 continues to refine the user experience with better interoperability and more robust modeling tools. This update prepares the codebase for further advancements in complex surface modeling.