This textbook on optics provides an introduction to key concepts of wave optics and light propagation. It uniquely makes extensive use of Fourier methods and the angular-spectrum approach, especially to provide a unified approach to Fraunhofer and Fresnel diffraction. A recurring theme is that simple building blocks such as plane and spherical waves can be summed to construct useful solutions. The text pays particular attention to analysing topics in contemporary optics such as propagation, dispersion, laser beams and wave guides, apodisation, tightly-focused vector fields, unconventional polarization states, and light-matter interactions. Throughout the text, the principles are applied through worked examples, and the book is copiously illustrated with more than 240 figures. The 200 end-of-chapter exercises offer further opportunities for testing the reader's understanding.

This textbook on optics provides an introduction to key concepts of wave optics and light propagation. It uniquely makes extensive use of Fourier methods and the angular-spectrum approach, especially to provide a unified approach to Fraunhofer and Fresnel diffraction. A recurring theme is that simple building blocks such as plane and spherical waves can be summed to construct useful solutions. The text pays particular attention to analysing topics in contemporary optics such as propagation, dispersion, laser beams and wave guides, apodisation, tightly-focused vector fields, unconventional polarization states, and light-matter interactions. Throughout the text, the principles are applied through worked examples, and the book is copiously illustrated with more than 240 figures. The 200 end-of-chapter exercises offer further opportunities for testing the reader's understanding.

This book gathers the lecture notes of courses given at Session CVII of the summer school in physics, entitled "Current Trends in Atomic Physics" and held in July, 2016 in Les Houches, France. Atomic physics provides a paradigm for exploring few-body quantum systems with unparalleled control. In recent years, this ability has been applied in diverse areas including condensed matter physics, high energy physics, chemistry and ultra-fast phenomena as well as foundational aspects of quantum physics. This book addresses these topics by presenting developments and current trends via a series of tutorials and lectures presented by international leading investigators.