Optical systems research.

Across two UCD and Huawei Technologies research projects, I worked on beam steering, beam shaping, and optoelectronic switching. The work combined programming and optical modelling with the practical discipline of aligning real components and measuring what the system actually produced.

In 2018, I worked as lead programmer in a team developing and testing beam-steering algorithms with MATLAB, Python, and experimental hardware. In 2019, the research moved into optoelectronic switching and beam shaping, with extensive use of Python and Zemax OpticStudio.

Model the system

Zemax OpticStudio provided a way to describe the optical path and inspect how a design should behave before changing the physical setup. Python and MATLAB supported algorithm development, data handling, and repeatable analysis around those models.

Build the path

Physical optics makes small errors visible. Component position, angle, focus, and alignment all matter. The bench work translated an abstract model into a constrained real system with lenses, mounts, fibre, detectors, and test equipment.

A useful model is not the finish line. The critical step is comparing its output with physical measurements, understanding any difference, and deciding whether the cause is the model, the setup, the algorithm, or the measurement itself.

• Make the model explicit enough that its assumptions can be challenged.
• Change one meaningful variable at a time and keep the test repeatable.
• Treat an unexpected result as information about the system, not merely a failed run.

The work strengthened a method I still rely on: reduce a difficult system to measurable questions, build the smallest credible experiment, and let evidence drive the next iteration. Optical engineering makes that discipline unavoidable—and transferable.