About SPIE Optics + Photonics

SPIE Optics + Photonics is a premier international conference and exhibition bringing together leaders in optical engineering, photonics technologies, and applied research. The event showcases the latest advancements in optical design, simulation, imaging, and system development, offering a unique opportunity to connect with industry experts, researchers, and innovators shaping the future of photonics.

Visit Keysight at SPIE Optics + Photonics

Keysight is excited to exhibit at SPIE Optics + Photonics, where we will showcase our comprehensive suite of Optical Design Engineering Solutions.

Our portfolio supports the full optical system design workflow—from concept through validation—enabling engineers to model, analyze, and optimize complex optical systems with confidence. Whether you're working on imaging systems, illumination design, or photonic devices, our solutions help accelerate innovation and improve design accuracy.

Stop by our booth #437 to connect with our experts, explore live demonstrations, and learn how Keysight software can help you solve your most challenging optical design problems.

Keysight Demos

Explore demonstrations of Keysight's industry-leading optical and photonic design solutions, featuring workflows for imaging, illumination, photonics, metalenses, machine vision, and AI-assisted optical engineering.

RSoft Photonic Device Tools

Accelerate photonic innovation from device design to system-level performance.

Design and Optimize Terahertz Metalenses

Streamline terahertz (THz) metalens development through meta-atom design, BSDF generation, and inverse optimization in a unified workflow.

Combines RSoft DiffractMOD RCWA and MetaOptic Designer to achieve full phase control, maximize focusing performance, and generate fabrication-ready GDS layouts. Enables rapid development of compact THz optics for imaging, sensing, communications, and aerospace systems.

Photonic Devices and Applications – Simulate End-to-End Optical Links in Keysight ADS and RSoft

Streamlines optical communication system development by integrating electrical, photonic, and Ethernet design flows into a single simulation environment. Enables end-to-end EOE co-simulation of photonic ICs, modulators, fiber links, WDM networks, photodetectors, and receivers while providing eye-diagram and BER analysis. Accelerates development of AI, data center, and telecom interconnects with greater confidence and reduced design cycles.​

LightTools Illumination Design Software

Powerful illumination design software for virtual prototyping, simulation, optimization, and photorealistic visualization.

Integrate VisionSym virtual environments with LightTools Models

Explore how VisionSym integrates into the LightTools workflow to extend optical modeling with human-vision simulation. Engineers can visualize a design in a real-world environment and set better expectations of product performance, effect, and appearance.

Analyze Imaging System Stray Light Performance in LightTools

See how the latest capabilities in LightTools support a stray light workflow that enriches model analysis before prototyping and production. Engineers can bring virtual prototyping and digital twins closer to practical reality while eliminating costly potential issues.

Build Extended Reality Displays with LightTools AR Waveguide Designer

Discover how the AR Waveguide Designer helps build starting models of extended reality displays using k-space visualization. Engineers can identify potential issues and effects from coupling gratings within the display lens, from the initial object display to the image delivered to the system eye box.

CODE V Optical Design Software

Advanced optical design and optimization for imaging systems, freeform optics, and photonic devices.

Generate Lens Design Starting Points with AI

Explore how AI Start Expert creates multiple candidate lens designs from a small set of optical specifications. Instead of searching for existing designs and adapting them manually, engineers can quickly generate starting points, compare alternatives, and begin optimization in CODE V.

Perform Tolerancing for Realistic Fabrication and Alignment Workflows

See how Accelerated Custom Tolerancing simulates realistic fabrication and multi-step alignment workflows using customizable tolerances, compensators, and performance metrics. Engineers can perform Monte Carlo and sensitivity analyses that better reflect real-world manufacturing while reducing simulation time through parallel processing.

Optimize Imaging Performance and Transmission with Metalenses

See how CODE V combines conventional optics and metalenses within a single design workflow. Engineers can optimize imaging performance and transmission using meta-atom data computed from nanophotonic simulations, evaluate system behavior, and generate layouts for fabrication.

ImSym – Imaging System Simulator

End-to-end imaging system simulation that predicts real-world image quality before hardware is built.

Simulate Endoscopic Imaging Performance

Explore how ImSym models a complete endoscopic imaging system, including custom LED spectra, optics, image sensors, and image processing. Engineers can evaluate image quality, predict glare and ghosting from stray light, and study depth-of-field effects.

Predict Ghosting Caused by Realistic Coatings

Learn how ImSym simulates colored ghosting caused by coating thickness variations and stray light from sources outside the field of view. Engineers can analyze ghost artifacts, compare coating designs, and evaluate their impact on final image quality.

Simulate Infrared Imaging Systems

See how ImSym models a complete mid-wave infrared (MWIR) imaging system, including custom sensor spectral response and monochrome infrared sensors. Engineers can simulate monochrome infrared imagery, apply custom Python-based image processing, and generate false-color visualizations.

Evaluate Illumination Effects on Machine Vision

Discover how ImSym simulates a PCB inspection system under different lighting conditions. Engineers can study the impact of illumination angle on image acquisition and shape detection performance using custom image-processing routines.

Don’t Miss Our Technical Sessions to Go Deeper Into Keysight Optical Design Engineering Software Workflows and Real World Use Cases.

John Rogers

John Rogers
Optical Engineer, Keysight Technologies

Results of Global Optimization with a Variety of Desensitization Methods

In this paper we compare the results of global optimization using various desensitization methods. In each case we create a set of solutions that are desensitized according to the desensitization method used. The as-built performance of the solution sets are compared using monte-carlo simulation. The improvement of asbuilt performance and the correlation between the optimization merit function and the as-built performance are assessed.

  • Date: August 23, 2026
  • Time: 10:40 AM - 11:00 AM PDT
  • Location: Convention Center. Room 15A

Freeform Mathematical Surface Form Effect on a Tolerance Sensitivity

This work investigates how mathematical parameterizations of freeform optical surfaces affect tolerance sensitivity. An optical system is analyzed using different surface descriptions: conventional Zernike polynomials, Keystone remapped aspheres, and the Forbes Q type freeform. Comparative tolerance analyses are performed to quantify the impact of each representation on manufacturability. Strategies for tolerance desensitization are also evaluated.

  • Date: August 23, 2026
  • Time: 2:10 PM - 2:30 PM PDT
  • Location: Convention Center. Room 15A
Scott Sparrold

Scott Sparrold
Optical Engineer, Keysight Technologies

David

David Lippman
Optical Engineer, Keysight Technologies

Leveraging an Intermediate Image in the Multi-Step Alignment of Freeform Telescopes

Off-axis telescope designs require great care in identifying the optimal alignment strategy. Which mirrors should be adjusted, in what order, and with what degrees of freedom? There is an inherent alignment advantage to designs with an intermediate image, even if it is not a well-corrected one, since the system can initially be aligned by one of its subsystems. First, one half of the system can be aligned up to its intermediate image with a CGH null. Then, the second half can be adjusted using the aligned first half as its null. We show in a high-fidelity, multi-step tolerance analysis that this process out-performs the alternative of aligning the full system with all mirrors in place from the start. The stepwise tolerance analysis faithfully simulates the sequential assembly process, including explicit modeling of CGH null testing in a double-pass configuration.

  • Date: August 23, 2026
  • Time: 2:30 PM - 2:50 PM PDT
  • Location: Convention Center. Room 15A

Assessing the Impact of Tolerances on Merit Functions: End-to-End System Design with ImSym

End-to-end imaging simulation is an important tool for understanding how manufacturing tolerances propagate through a complete optical system to affect the final image quality. These errors include effects from optics, detectors, stray light, and image signal processing (ISP). Using a new imaging system simulator, ImSym, we evaluate how these perturbations affect system-level image quality. We apply controlled manufacturing and alignment variations to the optics, as well as detector imperfections, stray light effects, and ISP effects. Using these methods, we show how system-level modeling identifies performance degradations throughout the complete optical system.

  • Date: August 23, 2026
  • Time: 3:50 PM - 4:10 PDT
  • Location: Convention Center. Room 15A
kamil

Kamil Krawczyk
Keysight Technologies

Maria

Maria Ruiz Hernandez
Applications Engineer, Keysight Technologies

Practical End-to-End Modeling of Stray Light in Imaging Systems with Limited Design Information

This presentation introduces a practical end-to-end modeling approach for predicting visible stray light artifacts in imaging systems when detailed design information is limited. By integrating optical geometry, stray light propagation, detector response, and simplified ISP modeling, the method enables image-based evaluation of ghost visibility rather than relying solely on irradiance metrics. A case study using a real outdoor photograph demonstrates that visually meaningful agreement can be achieved using typical sensor and ISP parameters, provided that key optical properties such as lens coatings are modeled with sufficient fidelity. The approach supports predictive analysis prior to hardware prototyping, offering practical guidance for early-stage design and stray light performance assessment.

  • Date: August 24, 2026
  • Time: 11:10 AM - 11:30 AM PDT
  • Location: Convention Center. Room 16B

End-to-End Simulation and Stray Light Characterization of Metalens Imaging Systems

Metalenses offer compact form factors and flexible wavefront-shaping capabilities that benefit a wide range of modern imaging systems, whether used as standalone elements or integrated with conventional optics. However, the limited transmission efficiency and multiple diffraction orders inherent to metalenses make such systems particularly susceptible to stray light. Stray light analysis is therefore essential to identify and quantify ghost reflections and flares that may degrade image quality. These effects are increasingly important as sensors achieve higher sensitivity and AI-based image analysis pipelines become standard. This work examines stray light effects in a representative metalens imaging system composed of metalens components, refractive elements, and mechanical housing. In addition, we present an end-to-end simulation framework that models the full image-formation chain, including accurate ray tracing, stray light, sensor effects, and image signal processing. The resulting virtual prototype enables task-based evaluation of metalens imaging systems that can accelerate product design cycle.

  • Date: August 25, 2026
  • Time: 11:20 AM - 11:40 AM
  • Location: Convention Center. Room 16B
Joy

Joy Ding
Applications Engineer, Keysight Technologies

Joseph

Joseph Wilson
K2realm, LLC

K2 Extensions for CODE V

K2 Extensions is a third-party add-on designed to expand the functionality and usability of CODE V, optical design code sold by Keysight Technologies. Meant to be a complement to CODE V’s extensive capabilities, K2 enhances the platform through advanced visualization, workflow automation, reporting, and optimization tools that improve productivity for both new and experienced optical engineers. By leveraging a robust API and efficient data exchange, K2 extensions integrate seamlessly with CODE V while adding specialized features such as interactive 3D viewing, universal sliders, advanced charting, automated reports, and project management support. This extensibility model increases user satisfaction, strengthens the overall value proposition of CODE V, and delivers flexible, cost-effective enhancements alongside a mature commercial platform.

  • Date: August 25, 2026
  • Time: 1:30 PM - 2:00 PM PDT
  • Location: Convention Center. Room 15A

Understanding Specification Tradeoffs in Starting Points for Optical Designs

This will be a joint presentation by both Nick Takaki and Eric Schiesser. Nick Takaki is a senior research and development engineer in the Optical Design Engineering group at Keysight Technologies, where he works on the CODE V team. Dr. Takaki earned his Ph.D. in Optics from the University of Rochester, and his B.S. and M.S. in mathematics from Carnegie Mellon University. His academic interests include optical design for manufacture and test, freeform optics, confocal conics and optimization. Eric M. Schiesser received his B.S. degrees in Physics and in Optical Engineering and his Ph.D. in Optics from the University of Rochester, where his doctoral research focused on reflective freeform telescope design and aberration theory. Dr. Schiesser is currently a senior staff engineer in R&D at Keysight Technologies in the Optical Design Engineering group. His academic interests include freeform optical system design, nodal aberration theory, and optical design automation.

  • Date: August 25, 2026
  • Time: 1:50 PM - 2:10 PM PDT
  • Location: Convention Center. Room 16B
Nick

Nick Takaki
Applications Engineer, Keysight Technologies

Maria

Maria Ruiz Hernandez
Applications Engineer, Keysight Technologies

Modeling Stray Light with Digital Twins to Ensure Manufacturing and Supply Chain Success

Digital twins provide a powerful mechanism for reducing cost and risk in imaging system prototyping and manufacturing by enabling teams to evaluate design performance against system requirements before committing resources hardware builds. Our prior work demonstrated that a digital twin could guide an imaging system design toward lower-cost solutions. In this continuation, the digital twin integrates lens design, optomechanical components, illumination design, bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BSDF) and stray light effects across an entire optical system. We present a digital twin of a machine vision system tasked with inspecting printed circuit boards (PCBs) for manufacturing errors. The result is a more complete virtual verification test that identifies edge case failures quickly and supports informed decisions about either making design revisions or moving forward with hardware verification activities.

  • Date: August 25, 2026
  • Time: 2:00 PM - 2:30 PM PDT
  • Location: Convention Center. Room 15A

Sequence Based Stray Light Analysis and Visualization Using High Performance Computing

Stray light analysis of an optical system is computationally expensive. In this paper, we demonstrate a fast stray light analysis and visualization approach using high-speed GPU ray tracing. GPU ray tracing traces rays parallelly, and each ray has a fixed memory footprint. Inserting new ray segments after a ray intersecting a surface is almost impossible without switching the context between CPU and GPU. To quickly analyze and visualize stray light, we predefine a set of stray light sequences where each sequence represents a stray light path. The sequences are traced to collect the distribution and quantitatively generate the image. To address the memory limitation of a GPU card, the sequences are divided into multiple groups. Each group is traced and the data is combined to generate the result. Our system shows that a 20 to 50x speed improvement can be achieved with a Nvidia RTX-4500 card.

  • Date: August 26, 2026
  • Time: 11:00 AM - 11:20 AM PDT
  • Location: Convention Center. Room 16B
Yong Fang

Yong Fang
Applications Engineer, Keysight Technologies