# LabCanvas Optics: draw optical setups with the beam path simulated live

> How to build optical setup diagrams in LabCanvas Optics: lasers, lenses, mirrors, beam splitters, gratings and detectors on a breadboard, rays and beams traced as you move parts, interference, ready-made setups and clean schematics for figures.

Published 2026-10-18 by LabCanvas team. https://www.labcanvas.com/blog/optics-optical-setup-simulator

![LabCanvas Optics with a Michelson interferometer on a breadboard: a HeNe laser, a beam splitter, two mirrors and a camera, with the beam traced in red](https://www.labcanvas.com/blog/apps/optics-michelson.webp)

**LabCanvas Optics** is an app for optical setups: place lasers, lenses, mirrors, beam splitters, gratings and detectors on a breadboard and the beam path is traced live as you move them. It is a drawing tool for clean setup schematics and a quick simulator for checking that a layout works. Setups go into figures as editable vector drawings.

## Ready-made setups

Open an example and change it, or start with an empty table.

:::grid
![Michelson interferometer in LabCanvas Optics](https://www.labcanvas.com/blog/apps/optics-michelson.webp "Michelson interferometer")
![Epi-fluorescence microscope in LabCanvas Optics](https://www.labcanvas.com/blog/apps/optics-fluorescence.webp "Epi-fluorescence microscope")
![Mercury lines on a diffraction grating in LabCanvas Optics](https://www.labcanvas.com/blog/apps/optics-grating.webp "Mercury lines on a grating")
:::

Other examples: Mach–Zehnder interferometer, Keplerian beam expander, spatial filter, prism spectrum, polarization with a half-wave plate and a polarizing beam splitter, fibre coupling, frequency doubling from 1064 to 532 nm, galvo scanning and a double slit.

## Parts

| Group | Examples |
| --- | --- |
| Sources | HeNe 632.8 nm, diode lasers, argon-ion, Nd:YAG, Ti:sapphire, LEDs, mercury and sodium lamps |
| Lenses | Plano-convex, bi-convex, aspheres, achromatic doublets, cylindrical and ball lenses, objectives, axicons |
| Mirrors | Metal and dielectric, spherical, parabolic, retroreflectors, galvo and polygon scanners, DMDs |
| Splitters and prisms | Cubes, plates, pellicles, polarizing beam splitters, dispersive and right-angle prisms, gratings |
| Filters and apertures | Iris, slits and pinholes, ND and colour filters, long-pass and laser-line filters |
| Detectors | Photodiodes, quadrant photodiodes, power meters, cameras, spectrometers |
| Electronics | Amplifiers, lock-in amplifiers, PID controllers, oscilloscopes, signal generators |

## How to draw a setup

1. Open [Optics](https://www.labcanvas.com/optics.html) and pick an example or an empty table.
2. Click a part in the left panel to add it after the selected one, or drag it onto a beam.
3. Move and rotate parts; the beams follow live. Switch between **Beams** and **Rays**.
4. Label parts and add dimension lines, arrows and enclosures.
5. Click **Add setup to canvas** to send it to your figure.

## Beams, rays and interference

The **Beams** view draws beams as coloured bands, as in a paper schematic. The **Rays** view shows the individual rays, useful for checking focusing and aberrations. With coherent sources and **Interference** on, the camera in an interferometer shows fringes that move when a mirror moves.

## Frequently asked questions

### What does LabCanvas Optics simulate?

It traces rays and beams through the parts as you place them: refraction in lenses and prisms, reflection, splitting, diffraction by gratings and slits, filters and absorption, with interference for coherent sources.

### Which parts are there?

Over 130: lasers and lamps, lenses and objectives, mirrors, beam splitters, prisms, gratings, filters, apertures, modulators, detectors such as photodiodes, cameras and spectrometers, fibre couplers, and electronics such as amplifiers, lock-ins and oscilloscopes.

### Are there example setups?

Yes: a Michelson and a Mach–Zehnder interferometer, a beam expander, a spatial filter, a prism spectrum, mercury lines on a grating, an epi-fluorescence microscope, polarization optics, fibre coupling, frequency doubling, galvo scanning and a double slit.

### How do I put the setup in my paper?

Click **Add setup to canvas**. It becomes an editable vector drawing in the figure, slide or poster open in another tab, or in a new figure.

### Is there a 3D view?

Yes. Switch to **3D** to see the setup on the table in perspective.

## Related links

- [Open Optics](https://www.labcanvas.com/optics.html)
- [Open the Michelson interferometer](https://www.labcanvas.com/optics.html?example=michelson)
- [The Figure editor guide](https://www.labcanvas.com/blog/figure-editor-scientific-illustration)
- [Slides guide](https://www.labcanvas.com/blog/slides-scientific-presentations)
- [Features of every app](https://www.labcanvas.com/features)