Optics Landscape¶
Scope¶
This view describes optical-modeling concepts relevant to Project Glowing Heart. It does not compare numerical accuracy, convergence, physical validity, or execution performance.
Technology Contexts¶
| Context | Capability vocabulary | Project Glowing Heart evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Geometrical ray optics | ray origin and direction, intersections, path state, observer projection | The shared fixture and observer vocabularies are introduced in v1.3 and v1.7. |
| Gradient-index optics | spatially varying optical fields and curved ray paths | The Glowing Heart smoke fixture and observable-output trail are documented in v0.1 through v0.3. |
| Lens and optical-system design tools | surfaces, media, apertures, field points, analysis outputs | Shared fixture candidates identify neutral metadata needed for future interchange in v1.0. |
| Wave and field solvers | field-domain quantities, boundary conditions, units, sampled outputs | Project Glowing Heart currently documents ray/measurement contracts; no wave-optics equivalence is claimed. |
| Optical measurement pipelines | units, normalization, dynamic range, channel meaning, artifact provenance | v1.9 defines these fields for preview snapshot declarations. |
Terminology may be cross-checked against public references such as RayOptics, Optiland, and COMSOL Ray Optics. Their inclusion identifies adjacent tool categories, not validated interchange or shared physical results.
Current Boundary¶
The repository evidence supports describing a GRIN-oriented transport prototype and its observation contracts. It does not establish agreement with an external optics package, laboratory measurement, wave solver, or scientific reference dataset.