Ansys Zemax OpticStudio

Ansys Zemax OpticStudio - Enterprise Optical Design and Analysis Software

Ansys Zemax OpticStudio is optical design software for simulating, optimising and tolerancing optical systems. It is the standard tool for optical, illumination and laser system design across the optics industry, used to progress from an initial layout to a manufacturable design with tolerances to support it.

Zemax has been part of Ansys since October 2021, and Ansys part of Synopsys since July 2025, so OpticStudio connects into the wider simulation workflow; lens data, for example, transfers to Ansys Speos for stray light analysis in the complete product.

Ansys Zemax OpticStudio 2026 R1

• Zemax OpticStudio HPC: spreads heavy simulation and tolerancing work across multiple cores or compute resources.
• Nested Elements and System Tolerancing (NEST): guided optomechanical tolerancing with mechanical grouping, smart pivots and automatic operands.
• NSC imaging design and Quick Focus: Non-Sequential Mode now works for imaging, with stops, spot diagrams and automatic detector focus.

Read more: What's New in Ansys Optics 2026 R1

Ansys Zemax OpticStudio Enterprise

Everything in Premium, plus STAR, which applies structural and thermal FEA data to the optical design for high-precision systems that must hold performance as temperatures and loads change.

Ansys Zemax OpticStudio Premium

Adds TrueFreeForm surfaces, phosphor and fluorescence modelling, fast non-sequential analysis with LightningTrace, path analysis for stray light, and CAD links to PTC Creo Parametric and Autodesk Inventor.

Ansys Zemax OpticStudio Pro

The standard simulation, optimisation and tolerancing tools for general optical design.

Ansys Zemax OpticsBuilder is now a legacy product; we can advise on the current path for CAD-based optical packaging.

Smartphone, AR and LiDAR Imaging Design

Sequential ray tracing, optimisation and image quality analysis (MTF, spot diagrams, wavefront) support smartphone cameras with aspheres and freeforms in tight spaces, microscopes and inspection optics, and AR systems including waveguides and diffraction gratings. For LiDAR, OpticStudio combines imaging, illumination and time-of-flight analysis, and for head-up displays it pairs optimisation with stray light and tolerance analysis.

Tolerancing for Manufacturable Optics

A design that performs only at nominal is not complete. Tolerancing identifies which surfaces and spacings are critical, so the remaining tolerances can be relaxed to reduce cost.

Illumination, Stray Light and Laser Beam Propagation

Non-sequential mode addresses illumination, stray light and laser beam paths, with Gaussian beam and physical optics propagation, fibre coupling and absorbed power analysis for laser processing. The ZOS-API supports custom analyses and automation.

Common Optical Design Consultation Topics

• Imaging lenses: lens design for machine vision, mobile and inspection cameras.
• Tolerancing for production: tolerance and yield analysis before manufacture.
• Illumination optics: LED collimation and illumination uniformity.
• Laser systems: beam delivery, focusing and fibre coupling.
• Stray light: ghost and scatter analysis in optical systems.

Have a project outside this list? Send us the specification. Where a study needs specialist knowledge, we draw on our wider Ansys partner network.

Related Products

• Ansys Speos: simulates how the optical system performs inside the complete product and how people perceive it.
• Ansys Lumerical: wave-optics simulation for metasurfaces, gratings and photonic structures.

Ansys Zemax OpticStudio FAQ

Which edition supports freeform optics?

Standard freeform surfaces are available in every edition. TrueFreeForm surfaces are included in Premium and Enterprise.

Related CADIT Training

• ZEMAX 101 - Ansys Zemax OpticStudio Introduction Training
• ZEMAX 201 - Ansys Zemax OpticStudio Laser & Fiber Optics Training
• ZEMAX 202 - Ansys Zemax OpticStudio Aspheres & Freeforms Training
• ZEMAX 203 - Ansys Zemax OpticStudio STAR Module Training
• ZEMAX 204 - Ansys Zemax OpticStudio Non-Sequential Illumination Training

Oct ’26 update by the CADIT Ansys Optics Team.