Abstract: A light generation and amplification system includes a length of laser-active filter fiber having a refractive index profile that suppresses unwanted Stokes orders at wavelengths longer than a target wavelength and that has normal dispersion over its operating wavelength. A nested series of reflectors is provided at the fiber's input and output ends, and are configured to provide a nested series of Raman cavities, separated in wavelength by approximately the respective Stokes shifts. The first cavity in the series is a combined cavity that provides laser oscillation due to a combination of ionic gain and feedback at a selected first wavelength and that provides Raman gain to light at the first Stokes shift of the first wavelength when light at the first wavelength has an energy exceeding a Raman scattering threshold. The Raman cavities provide a stepwise transition between the first wavelength and the target wavelength.

Abstract: Methods, systems and computer program code (software) products executable in a digital processor operable to generate a synthetic image include (1) selecting a rank-1 lattice in accordance with a maximized minimum distance function (max-min-dist lattice) corresponding to points in the synthetic image to be generated; (2) generating a data structure for efficient access of data stored in points of the rank-1 lattice, the data structure including the number n of lattice points, generator vector g, s basis vectors, and indices of the basis vectors, wherein the basis vectors are lattice points, and (3) generating, using the rank-1 lattice, digital output representative of a synthetic image, wherein the generating includes using the layout of rank-1 lattice points to represent textures of arbitrary dimension.

Abstract: Methods, systems and computer program code (software) products executable in a digital processor operable to simulate light transport in a scene by ray tracing (wherein the digital processor is operable to maintain an object list representing a list of objects associated with a boundary of the scene) include executing a ray tracing method that traces r rays through n objects by (1) partitioning the object list in a recursive manner to generate partitions and (2) culling away the partitions of objects from rays, without using an explicit auxiliary acceleration data structure.

Abstract: Methods, systems, devices, and computer program code (software) products enable acceleration of ray tracing by using acceleration data structures with high arity to enable processing of nodes using streaming SIMD (Single Instruction, Multiple Data) instructions with reduced memory requirements.

Abstract: Methods, systems, devices, and computer program code (software) products enable acceleration of ray tracing by using acceleration data structures with high arity to enable processing of nodes using streaming SIMD (Single Instruction, Multiple Data) instructions with reduced memory requirements.

Abstract: A technique is described for reducing group delay ripple in a fiber dispersion compensation grating. The grating is mounted into a trimming setup that includes a trimming device and a scanning assembly for causing a region of the grating to be scanned along its length by the trimming device output. The grating is sensitive to the trimming device output, such that exposure to the trimming device output causes a change in the effective refractive index of the scanned region, the amount of change varying as a function of scanning velocity. A region of the grating to be trimmed is selected, and a scanning velocity profile is programmed into the scanning assembly that is calculated to modify the effective refractive index of the selected grating region along its length so as to smooth out group delay ripple in the selected grating region.

Abstract: Techniques, systems, arrangements, and computer program products are operable in computer graphics systems to make shadow volumes more general with respect to the meshes that can serve as occluding geometry in such computer graphics systems, as well as for accelerating shadow volume techniques, particularly for large and complex input scenes.

Abstract: A stretcher fiber includes a core region, inner trench region, ring region, outer trench region, and outer cladding region. The core region has a radius r1, a refractive index n1, and a positive effective refractive index ?n1 with respect to an outer cladding region having an outer radius r0 and a refractive index n0, where ?n0 is equal to n1?n0. The inner trench region surrounds the core region and has an outer radius r2, a refractive index n2 less than n0, and a negative effective refractive index ?n2 equal to n2?n0. The ring region surrounds the trench region and has an outer radius r3, a refractive index n3 greater than n0, and a positive effective refractive index ?n3 equal to n3?n0. The outer trench region surrounds the ring region and has an outer radius r4, a refractive index n4 less than n0, and a negative effective refractive index ?n4 equal to n4?n0. The outer cladding region surrounds the outer trench region.

Abstract: Computer graphics methods, systems, apparatus and computer program code (software) products comprise: constructing a sparse implicit scene representation, wherein the representation is independent of geometric encoding and complexity of the input scene description, and the density of the resulting finite elements is proportional to their contribution to the final image to be generated, such that the geometric resolution of a given area of the obtained scene representation is proportional to its importance relative to the final image, wherein the constructing comprises using a Monte Carlo or quasi-Monte Carlo path tracing method to sample an adjoint importance distribution function and to shoot importons from a simulated camera into the scene, recording, for each simulated bounce, a particle i defined by selected information, the selected information comprising: 3D position pi, surface normal ni, and reflectance factor pi.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for determining an optimized placement for a virtual machine in a virtualized environment on the basis of available performance metrics, in which the virtualized environment includes at least two virtual machines, each hosting at least one application, and at least one virtualized hardware system managed by at least one virtualization server.

Abstract: Methods, systems, apparatus, and computer program/software code products, operable in a computer graphics system designed to render images and to apply shading to images, enable the following: during rendering of an image, modifying the shading normal in the region of a corner of an object in the image, such that when shading is applied to the image, the shaded image is capable of providing to a human viewer, when viewing the corner in the image, the appearance or visual illusion of a rounded corner, wherein the modifying comprises: calculating an amount of modification to be applied to an original shading normal in the region of the corner to simulate the appearance of a given fillet radius R, the calculating comprising: interrogating surfaces within a distance R of the corner for their shading normal, and calculating a new normal that is a weighted blend between the shading normal of the original surface and the shading normal of the interrogated neighboring surface, thereby, by the shading effect, to simul

Abstract: Methods, systems, devices and computer program code (software) products operable within a computer graphics system or other computer system enable quasi-Monte Carlo (QMC) light transport simulation by ray tracing: and include constructing a bounding interval hierarchy (BIH), within a computer, using quantized planes to reduce memory requirements while maintaining a selected degree of precision.

Abstract: A phase-engineered fiber is described for generating a cylindrically polarized beam. The fiber includes a core region, a ring region surrounding the core region, and an outer cladding region surrounding the ring region. The fiber regions are configured to cause the fiber to have a refractive index step proximate to the peak amplitude value of the mode intensity profile of an LP11 mode guided by the fiber. The refractive index step is sufficiently steep such that at least one of the cylindrically polarized TM01 and TE01 eigenmodes has an effective refractive index neff that is sufficiently separated from the respective effective refractive index of the other eigenmodes to allow coupling to the at least one cylindrically polarized eigenmode with minimal coupling to the other eigenmodes.

Abstract: In a method and system for providing dispersion compensation in an optical system, there is coupled into the optical system at least one pathway into which there is connected a tunable chirped fiber Bragg grating, each such grating providing a respective tunable amount of dispersion. At least one respective DGD element is connected into the respective pathway for each such grating. The set of all such respective DGD elements in a given pathway introduces a bias differential group delay DGD(bias) having an absolute value that, for at least one tuning value of the grating, is substantially equal to differential group delay introduced by the grating.

Abstract: A hybrid beam deposition (HBD) system and methods according to the present invention utilizes a unique combination of pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique and equipment with equipment and techniques that provide a radical oxygen rf-plasma stream to effectively increase the flux density of available reactive oxygen at a deposition substrate for the effective synthesis of metal oxide thin films. The HBD system and methods of the present invention further integrate molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) and/or chemical vapor deposition (CVD) techniques and equipment in combination with the PLD equipment and technique and the radical oxygen rf-plasma stream to provide elemental source materials for the synthesis of undoped and/or doped metal oxide thin films as well as the synthesis of undoped and/or doped metal-based oxide alloy thin films.

Abstract: A trackball rotates a three-dimensional image displayed by a computer. Displacement data is generated for designated first and second non-antipodal points on the surface of the trackball's roller ball, for displacement of the designated first and second points during a time interval between a starting time and an ending time. The displacement data is used to generate a rotational transformation that is representative of a change in rotational orientation of the roller ball occurring during the time interval. The generated transformation is then applied to the displayed computer image to cause the image to be rotated around an image pivot point in correspondence with the rotation of the roller ball around its center.

Abstract: Computer-based systems and methods enable analysts to manage and explore the information that hard drives and other storage devices or sources of data may contain, and for extracting forensic features and performing cross drive analysis.

Abstract: A technique is described for generating a cylindrically polarized beam, e.g., a radially or azimuthally polarized beam. An input optical fiber is provided that supports signal propagation in a fundamental LP01 mode. A mode converter device converts the fundamental LP01 mode into a higher-order LP11 mode output that includes a linear combination of modes, including cylindrically polarized TM01 and TE01 modes and mixed HE21 (even) and HE21 (odd) modes. The LP11 mode output propagates through a connected phase-engineered fiber having a refractive index profile that includes a steep refractive index step proximate to a peak amplitude of a mode intensity profile of the LP11 mode, such that at least one cylindrically polarized mode has an effective refractive index that is sufficiently separated from those of the mixed modes to allow for coupling to the at least one cylindrically polarized mode with minimal cross-coupling.

Abstract: Methods, systems, apparatus and computer software/computer code products operable to enable computer graphics systems to simulate Markov chains (and thus trajectories of photons and the like) comprise simulating, and/or means for simulating, Markov chains using a quasi-Monte Carlo methodology, wherein the simulating of Markov chains comprises sorting states, and wherein the sorting comprises proximity sorting.

Abstract: A system is described for generating a plurality of identifiers, each associated with one of a like plurality of subdivision surfaces of a surface element, and for generating, using an identifier for a subdivision surface, coordinates for the subdivision surface. Each identifier includes one or more position codes. Each position code indicates the position of a subdivision surface at a respective level relative to the next higher level, so that successive position codes in the identifier indicate the positions of subdivision surfaces through successive subdivision levels. To generate coordinates for a subdivision surface from the identifier associated with the subdivision surface, the system sequences through successive position codes in the identifier to determine locations of the subdivision surfaces through the successive levels.