Sädejäljityksen

Sädejäljityksen, often translated as ray tracing, is a rendering technique used in computer graphics to generate images by simulating the path of light rays. It is known for its ability to produce highly realistic lighting effects such as reflections, refractions, and shadows. The process involves tracing the path of each individual light ray from the camera through the virtual scene. When a ray intersects an object, its behavior is determined by the object's material properties. For example, if the object is reflective, a new ray is spawned in the direction of reflection. If the object is transparent, a ray is spawned in the direction of refraction. These calculations are performed for every pixel on the screen, making ray tracing a computationally intensive process.

Historically, ray tracing was a complex and time-consuming technique, primarily used in offline rendering for films and architectural visualizations where rendering times were less critical. However, advancements in hardware, particularly the development of dedicated ray tracing cores in modern GPUs, have enabled real-time ray tracing. This allows for dynamic lighting effects in video games and interactive applications. Techniques like denoising are often employed in real-time ray tracing to reduce the computational cost while maintaining visual quality. The quality of the rendered image is directly related to the number of rays traced and the complexity of the scene.