Optics Timeline
Optics is the physical science that studies the origin and propagation of light, how it changes, what effects it produces, and other phenomena associated with it. This "Optics Timeline" highlights important events and developments in the science of optics from prehistory to the beginning of the 21st century. It also includes related developments in other fields and related milestones in the human worldview.
1920
- 1920 — Made the first measurements of a star's diameter (Alpha Orionis).
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A. A. Michelson
- 1920 — Bent glass rods used for microscope illumination.
- 1921 — Western Union sends the first electonically-transmitted photograph.
- 1923 — Nobel Prize in Physics awarded for work on the elementary charge of electricity and on the photoelectric effect."
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Robert Andrews Millikan
- 1925 — "Leica" 35mm format camera introduced
- 1926 — Performed experiments to refine the measurement of the speed of light.
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A A Michelson
- 1926 — Concept of using hollow tubes to transmit images patented
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C Francis Jenkins (US) and John Logie Baird (England)
Both patented the concept of using hollow pipes to transmit images for television and facsimile systems.
- 1926 — Patent for mechanical television receiver
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C. Francis Jenkins
Applies for US patent on a mechanical television receiver in which light passes along quartz rods in a rotating drum to form an image.
- 1926 — Principles of the fiber-optic imaging bundle outlined and in 1927 patent application filed.
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Clarence W. Hansell
- 1927 — Developed a theory of electrons in metal by applying quantum theory to the structure of metals.
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Arnold Sommerfeld
- 1927 — Modern flashbulb created
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GE
- 1927 — Presented a method of representing the electromagnetic radiation field in quantized form.
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Paul Adrien & Maurice Dirac
- 1928 — First observation of Raman scattering
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Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman
Indian physicist Chandrasekhara Raman observes that when light passes through a transparent substance, some of the light is deflected and changes in wavelength. This will eventually be called Raman scattering, a result of the Raman effect.
- 1928 — Confirmed existence of stimulated emmision.
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Rudolph W. Landenburg
- 1928 — First OSA award established: Frederic E. Ives Medal for distinguished work in optics.
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Frederid E. Ives
- 1928 — New type of optical microscope proposed to bypass classical diffraction limit
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Edward H. Synge
Proposes a new type of optical microscope that would bypass the classical diffraction limit.
- 1929 — Creation of a new kind of polarizing material
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Ed Land
Creates a new kind of polarizing material in a plastic sheet.