Wavelength shift determination using a dual-path heterodyne Mach-Zehnder interferometer

This paper introduces a dual-path heterodyne Mach-Zehnder interferometer adopted for wavelength shift determinations. In this interferometer, two parallel incident beams are separated into two interference pairs which are then recombined to generate two interference signals. A parallel plate is placed on the path of one wave of an interference pair, so the phase difference of the interference signals is a function of the plate and beam wavelength, and the interferometer is thus able to determine the wavelength shift of the incident beam. A setup constructed to realize the proposed interferometer is described, it shows that the interferometer has a resolution up to 1.1 × 10⁻¹⁰ (λ²/nm), and the experimental results of applying this setup not only agree the validity of the interferometer but also indicate that the interferometer has a stability of 6.5 × 10⁻¹⁰ (λ²/nm).     

Highly sensitive interferometric system for optical surface contouring

In the present work we demonstrate a highly sensitive system for optical surface contouring constructed by combining phase conjugation and digital phase shifting interferometry. The phase conjugating mirror in the modified phase conjugate Michelson interferometer is based on degenerate four wave mixing in a photorefractive BTO crystal. Digital phase shifting interferometry is used to decode the interference fringe pattern. An increase in sensitivity and high measurement accuracy are achieved through this new combination due to the interferometric scheme and the phase shifting. Experimental results are presented. The interferometric system is flexible and undergoes further improvement.     

Problems in polarized light microscopy observation of birefringence of calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate crystals

To reconsider the problems arising from the use of the phase plate as a test plate inserted into a polarized light microscope system for the analysis of triclinic calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate (t-CPPD) crystals, or Ca₂P₂O₇·2H₂O in the synovial fluid of arthritis patients, we made the polarized light microscopy observations using a phase plate with a retardation of 530 nm for the synthesized t-CPPD crystals well-characterized by X-ray powder pattern indexing and single crystal X-ray diffraction measurements. The microscopy observations were made of crystals of different sizes, thicknesses and shapes. The retardation was assessed using the interference color chart at four extinction and diagonal positions both with and without the test plate. The addition and subtraction states produced by superimposing the retardations of two anisotropic materials, that is, the t-CPPD crystal and the 530 nm phase plate, were deduced from the interference color change by inserting the test plate at four diagonal positions. When the color change of a crystal at a diagonal position resulting from 90-degree rotation exhibits no clear birefringence, the interference color chart was shown to be useless. We suggested the use of a compensator whose retardation can be changed to obtain an accurate value for the retardation of the crystal.     

Dispositif de mesure du diametre des anneaux d'un interferometre Perot-Fabry eclaire en impulsions lumineuses

This letter describes a new method used for the detection of a Pe´rot-Fabry interferometer-fringe system. The interference rings light, through a telescope, a plate made of 50 photoresisting ring cells; the numbers of the most lighted cells are displayed on a panel. With a 16 cm Pe´rot-Fabry interferometer, the limit of resolution is actually about 0.001 cm^-1.     

A new lateral shearing interferometer for precision surface measurement

A new lateral shearing interferometer is proposed for precision surface measurement. In this shearing interferometer, a novel shear generator made of a single birefringence crystal plate is utilized. The shear adjustment is realized through the change of angle at which tested wavefront is incident into the crystal plate. By changing the orientation of the principal section of the plate, the generator can adjust the shearing direction. With the incident beam being circularly polarized, the generator can equalize the intensities of two shearing beams to make a good contrast interference pattern. The interferometer is simple and compact in terms of mechanism and has a complete common optical path structure. Phase shifting can be realized conveniently. The interferometer is insensitive to external vibrations and environmental disturbances, and hence has good stability and reliability with high measurement accuracy. To examine the performance of the proposed interferometer, experimental testing was conducted. High accuracy and repeatability are demonstrated.     

Suppression of Multiple-Beam Interference Noise in Testing an Optical-Parallel Plate by Wavelength-Scanning Interferometry

Measurements of optical parallel plates in a Fizeau interferometer lead to problems from multiple-beam interference noise unless the back surface of the plate has an additional treatment to prevent its reflection from reaching the detector. Such internal-reflection noise can be separated from the fundamental interference signal by its modulation frequency in a wavelength-scanning interferometer. However, to completely eliminate the noise, the air-gap distance between the testing and reference surfaces of the interferometer must be adjusted to a specific value, depending on the thickness and refractive index of the plate. This adjustment requires an undesirable change in the air gap, which is related to the phase modulation rate of the interferometer, and also requires additional information regarding the testing plate, which makes the measurement laborious. We show that if we add new symmetries to the sampling functions of the phase measuring algorithm, we can obtain significantly greater tolerance for the air-gap error. A new 19-sample algorithm allows a tolerance of ±23% while keeping the systematic errors at less than λ/200. The periodicity of the new algorithm and an integrating bucket technique also provide more options for the thickness of the testing plate, which guarantees an air-gap distance more independent of this thickness.     

Phase profile analysis of transparent objects through the use of a two windows interferometer based on a one beam splitter configuration

In this research we implemented a two windows interferometer based on polarization phase shifting and grating interferometry techniques in order to retrieve the phase data profile of the object in a single capture. The optical configuration has two optical beams with circular polarization in opposite directions, and it is coupled with a 4-f system. An amplitude grid is used as a filter which is placed at the Fourier plane to obtain replicas of each beam which can properly interfere, depending on the separation between beams. The interferometer presents the capability of changing the beam separation in order to make different orders interfere properly. The interference patterns produced can be separately modulated through the operation of linear polarizer's placed on each interference replica. In order to present the capabilities of the system we will select four interferograms result of contiguous orders interference.     

Visualization of radiation from a high-power terahertz free electron laser with a thermosensitive interferometer

A thermosensitive interferometer based on a plane-parallel glass plate is used for visualization of a high-power terahertz radiation. The plane wavefront of visible radiation emitted by a semiconductor laser is reflected from the two surfaces of the plate and forms on a screen an interference pattern recorded by a digital video camera. Terahertz radiation being measured is incident on the outer surface of the plate and heats a thin surface layer, which causes a shift of interference fringes. For K8 glass, a shift by one fringe corresponds to an absorbed energy of 5.1 J/cm². The problem of determining the sign of the phase shift was solved by comparing the interference patterns with the images obtained with an infrared imager sensitive to near IR radiation. The processing of interference patterns makes it possible to determine the power density distribution over the beam cross section of the Novosibirsk free electron laser. In these measurements, the absolute value of the beam power determined by integrating over the cross section was 65 ± 7 W for a 130-μm wavelength. Visualization of the complex image with a spatial resolution no worse than 1 mm and a frame repetition rate of 25 Hz is demonstrated.     

Plane-parallel biaxial plates as polarization interferometers

Plane-parallel biaxial plates as polarization interferometers. Knowing the refractive indices and the directions of the rays inside a birefringent crystal, it is possible to calculate the positions of the images formed, when a non-parallel light beam incides on it.We part from general expressions for images in plane-parallel plates of any type of medium and we use vectorial expressions for the incident and refractive rays and waves in both interfaces.From them, we obtained the interference patterns which are observed when the plate is placed between two crossed polarizers. This experimental device constitutes a polarization interferometer. In order to find the shape of the interference patterns, we superposed the wave's fronts emerging from the images determining, in this way, the phase difference curves of phase constant on a screen.     

An X-ray interferometer with Bragg case beam splitting and beam recombination

A new type of X-ray interferometer which uses Bragg case transmission for beam splitting and for beam recombination is described. The principles and special problems of this interferometer are discussed and a strict plane-wave treatment of the interference phenomena is presented. The feasibility of such a device is demonstrated by some interference patterns, obtained with an instrument made from a silicon crystal for use with copperKα radiation and the 220 Bragg reflection. Since, for the operation of the Bragg case interferometer, strong absorption is not essential, such devices may also be more suitable than the previously reported Laue case interferometer^1,2 for use with neutrons.     

Dynamic Mach–Zehnder interferometer based on a Michelson configuration and a cube beam splitter system

We developed simultaneous phase-shifting system based on a Mach–Zehnder interferometer and a replicating system integrated by a Michelson configuration and a cube beam splitter. The system is capable to obtain four simultaneous interferograms in a single capture, and the phase shifts are controlled by placing a linear polarizer in each replica obtained. The system retrieves four interferograms with a relative phase shift of π/2 and the optical phase map is calculated using the four-step algorithm. In addition, the configuration presents potential capabilities for generating spiral interference patterns. To show the advantage of the technique, experimental results are presented for static and dynamic samples.

     

Measurements of neutron interference and polarization effects caused by nuclear and magnetic interaction

The effects of simultaneous phase shift and spin rotation on neutron waves were measured with the perfect crystal neutron interferometer. Using an unpolarized beam of slow neutrons characteristic “beat” effects of the interference pattern and a polarization of the neutrons behind the interferometer could be observed.     

High-resolution,quasi-Fabry—Perot X-ray interferometer

An extremely simple X-ray interferometer is described that should provide resolutions (λ/Δλ) of more than 10⁵. It relies on the use of nonlocalized, quasi-Fabry—Pérot interference fringes, which are detectable when a widely divergent beam of X-rays from a point source is incident on a good quality crystal. The crystal has to have a suitable lattice spacing, and in the basic method described, must not exceed a certain thickness (or coherence length).     

System for measuring optical admittance of a thin film stack

A new method based on the polarization interferometer structure has been applied to measure the optical admittance, the refractive index and thickness of a thin film. The structure is a vibration insensitive optical system. There is one Twyman-Green interferometer part to induce a phase difference and one Fizeau interferometer part to induce the interference in the system. The intensities coming from four different polarizers were measured at the same time to prevent mechanical vibration influence. Using the polarization interferometer, the optical admittance, the refractive index and thickness of a single layer of Ta₂O₅ thin film has been measured. The measurement results were compared with the results obtained by ellipsometer. The results meet reasonable values in both refractive index and thickness.     

Dynamic phase profile of phase objects based in the use of a quasi-common path interferometer

In this paper, we propose a quasi common-path interferometer based on a two beams configuration (TBC) using simultaneous phase shifting interferometry modulated by polarization that shows insensitivity against external vibration. Due to the fact that the configuration is capable of obtaining two beams whose separation can be varied, according to the characteristics of the grid used, to obtain the interference patterns. It can be used to implement a quasi-common path interferometer that allows the measurement of dynamic events with high accuracy. For demodulate the fringe patterns generated by the optical system we using the conventional four step phase shifting method. Experimental results are also given.     

光和原子关联与量子计量

物理量的测量与单位标准的统一推动了计量学的发展.量子力学的建立,激光技术的发明以及原子与分子物理学的发展,在原理与技术上进一步刷新了计量学的研究内涵,特别是激光干涉与原子频标技术的发展,引起了计量学革命性的飞跃.基于激光干涉的引力波测量、激光陀螺仪,基于原子干涉的原子钟、原子陀螺仪等精密测量技术相继诞生,一个以量子物理为基础,探索与开拓物理量精密测量方法与技术的新的科学分支——量子计量学(Quantum Metrology)已然兴起.干涉是计量学中最常用的相位测量方法.量子干涉技术,其相位测量精度能够突破标准量子极限的限制,是量子计量学与量子测量技术的核心研究内容.本文重点介绍近几年我们在量子干涉方面所取得的新开拓与新发展,主要内容包括基于原子系综中四波混频过程的SU(1,1)型光量子关联干涉仪和基于原子系综中拉曼散射过程的光-原子混合干涉仪.     

Measurement of surface figure of plane optical surfaces with polarization phase-shifting Fizeau interferometer

A Fizeau interferometer based set up for measurement of surface forms of plane optical surfaces has been discussed. Phase shifting interferometry has been applied using polarization phase shifter. A linearly polarized (632.8 nm) He–Ne laser has been used as the source. Light reflected from the object and the reference/master surfaces are made circularly polarized in opposite senses by means of two properly oriented quarter wave retardation plates placed at appropriate positions, one inside and other outside the interference cavity of the interferometer, and phase shifts are introduced between the object and the reference/master waves by varying angular orientation of a polarizer/analyzer. Final result is made free from any residual wave-front aberrations introduced by the (intra-cavity) wave plate by subtracting phase values obtained by PSI technique between a high optical quality master surface and the reference surface from that obtained for the test object surface with respect to the same reference surface for each point of the interference field. Results are shown for a plane surface.Advantages of the technique presented are linearity and high accuracy in phase stepping, no perturbation of the interference cavity during the phase shifting and possibility of real time or dynamic interferometry.     

基于BSO晶体的振动测量系统

利用光折变晶体材料,可实现宽带、微小振动测量。测量系统采用零差干涉结构,使用硅酸铋(BSO)晶体记录信号光与参考光干涉所形成的动态全息,并实时衍射,再由光电探测器探测从BSO晶体出射的透射信号光与衍射参考光所形成的干涉信号,从而实现对振动的测量。通过对BSO晶体中全息记录条件,包括两光束夹角、光强比,与衍射效率关系的研究,确定了最佳记录条件。在参考光路中利用1/4波片改变光束偏振态,使干涉系统在BSO晶体不加外电场情况下,具有较高测量灵敏度。以一定频率驱动的压电陶瓷为被测物体,在0.5～90kHz的频率范围内所测量到的振动频率与预先加载的频率一致。     

Parallel Plate Interferometer with a Reflecting Mirror for Measuring Angular Displacement

A parallel plate interferometer with a reflecting mirror for measuring angular displacement is proposed. A deflection angle of a beam caused by an angular displacement is amplified by use of a reflecting mirror to increase the optical path difference (OPD) in the plane-parallel plate, which provides high sensitivity of the phase measurement. Detection of light transmitted through the plane-parallel plate with a position sensitive detector (PSD) enables high accurate measurement of the initial angle of incidence to the plane-parallel plate with insensitivity to stray light. The improved parallel plate interferometer achieves a measurement repeatability of 10⁻⁸ rad.     

Investigation of interference field phase distribution with a lateral shearing interferometer

Problems of investigating the interference field are discussed. An investigation method is suggested which is based on using an imperfect plane-parallel plate lateral shearing interferometer for comparing aberrations in the arms of the two-beam interferometer which generates the interference field. It is demonstrated that equipartition of interference field fringes can be analyzed to an accuracy of λ/100 which exceeds the manufacturing accuracy of the lateral shearing interferometer.