ABSTRACT
The role of diffraction gratings in Science goes far beyond the aims and the limits of this book. However, for better understanding the contents of the following chapters it is necessary to have a basic knowledge of grating properties. The aim of this chapter is to briefly review the fundamental properties of gratings in linear optics and to show their role in nonlinear optics. In order to help the unprepared reader in understanding the following chapters, we present a review of grating problems in linear regime, which are found in various domains of optics and science. The basic concepts of the main rigorous electromagnetic theories are then given, summarizing the development observed in the last quarter of the century. The chapter is completed with a user’s guide of the grating theories, supposed to serve engineers and scientists in choosing the methods, which are better, suited to a particular problem.
