Dispersive white-light spectral interferometry including the effect of thin-film for distance measurement

A spectral-domain white-light interferometric technique is used for measuring distances in a Michelson interferometer with a mirror represented by a thin-film structure (TFS) on a substrate. A fibre-optic spectrometer is employed for recording spectral interferograms that include wide wavelength range effects of dispersion in a cube beam splitter and multiple reflection within the TFS. Knowing the effective thickness of the beam splitter, its dispersion and parameters of the TFS and substrate, the positions of the second interferometer mirror are determined precisely by a least-squares fitting of the theoretical spectral interferograms to the recorded ones. We apply the technique to the beam splitter made of BK7 optical glass and to a uniform SiO₂ thin film on a silicon wafer. We compare the results of the processing that include and do not include the effect of the TFS.     

Speckle interferometry methods for displacement and strain measurements using photorefractive crystal

Photorefractive crystals offer several attractive features such as high resolution and in situ processing. As the images are erasable, these crystals are suitable for read–write applications and hence find potential use in speckle photography, image processing and holography. The barium titanate (BaTiO₃) crystal as recording medium has been extensively used as a novelty filter for real-time in-plane displacement measurements employing two-beam coupling configuration. This paper presents new optical configurations in speckle shear photography to measure in-plan displacement and the strain in real time using BaTiO₃ crystal as recording medium. Speckle photography studies are made using a simple two-beam coupling configuration. In speckle shear photography, a diffused object illuminated with two parallel narrow laser beams is imaged inside the crystal, and a pump beam is added at this plane. The speckle patterns due to each beam and the pump beam produce index gratings. When the object is deformed, the speckle patterns shift consequently. We now have four speckle fields: two generated from the interaction of pump beam with the index gratings and two pertaining to deformed states directly transmitted through the crystal. Thus, the fields from respective points on the object interfere after passage through the crystal and produce the Young's fringe patterns. Due to strain, the fringes in each pattern are of different width and orientation, resulting in the generation of a Moiré pattern. The strain is obtained from the width and orientation of the fringes in the Moiré pattern. The experiments are conducted on a specimen with a notch, which is subjected to tensile loading. The in-plane displacement is measured separately in another experiment. The above studies are carried out at Nd–Yag laser.     

In situ calibration of a Michelson type, speckle-shearing interferometer: Wobbling mirror effect

In situ calibration of piezoelectric transducers in a phase stepping, Michelson type, speckle-shearing interferometer can be affected by mirror wobbling introduced by the transducers. When this happens, a modulation of the curves employed for calibration can be readily detected in imaging systems with large apertures. A calibration method that takes into account the modulation of these curves is, therefore, essential to insure the required regularity of the phase steps. A computer model of speckle-shearing interferometry is used to deal with piezoelectric non-linearities and mirror wobbling in the interferometer, and to show how the calibration curves are affected when both phenomena are present. Computer simulated and experimental results validate the calibration technique advanced here.     

Combined implementing the hole-drilling method and reflection hologram interferometry for residual stresses determination in cylindrical shells and tubes

Main features inherent in simplified approach to residual stresses determination in cylindrical shells and tubes, external diameter of which is not less than 60 mm, by combing the hole-drilling method and reflection hologram interferometry are discussed in detail. Initial experimental information in a form of hole diameter increments in principal stress directions is derived from high-quality reflection holograms recorded near cylindrical objects of intermediate curvature value. Converting measured parameters into required stress values is based on the transition model that corresponds to plane stress conditions of pure membrane type. The technique developed is capable of determining residual stress component values within 5% accuracy in an absence of stress gradients over the probe hole diameter when a type of residual stress field corresponds to the transition model adopted. The accuracy analysis involved is based on matrix formulation of conventionally direct problem and an assumption on a pure membrane character of residual stress field under study for thin-walled shell. Required error estimations in a case of inspecting thick-walled cylindrical tube are obtained by combining the above-mentioned approach and an analogy of reconstructed fringe patterns with actual and artificial interferograms, which follow from drilling blind hole of the same geometrical parameters in thick-walled plates. Experimental verification of the developed approach is founded upon a determination of actual stresses in thin-walled cylindrical shell and obtaining residual stress distributions at the proximity of welded joint in thick-walled cylindrical tube.     

干涉测量用半导体激光器驱动电源

设计了一种可调制的高稳定度半导体激光器驱动电路。该电路的直流稳定度高达1.5×10-5，输出电流在0～200mA内连续可调，长时间工作（12h以上）电流变化小于1μA；在直流基础上注入100kHz～300kHz的调制电流，其调制深度为0～100mA连续可调，可实现在激光干涉测量中对光波频率和光波强度的调制。将该电路驱动的光栅外腔半导体激光器和辅助温度控制电路应用于光干涉测量技术中，得到了功率稳定、波长单一的激光输出，解决了激光器的跳模现象，完成了对远距离微小振动（纳米量级）的测量。     

一种相位提取算法误差特性的分析

设计了一种新的相位提取算法，根据推导的评价函数，研究了其误差特性，与传统相位提取算法做了比较分析，其频域特性有了显著提高．分析结果证明该算法对失谐误差不敏感，高阶偶数谐波误差对结果值也不敏感，具有比较优势．仿真实验结果验证了理论预期．     

Comparison between a white-light interferometer and a tactile formtester for the measurement of long inner cylindrical surfaces

Shape measurements of engineering surfaces are an interesting and important application for white-light interferometry (WLI). Due to some factors such as: (a) the high-processing speed, (b) the ability to measure a huge quantity of points of the evaluated surface, and (c) the non-contacting nature; WLI has become a valuable tool for practical applications. This paper shows the achieved comparison between a modified white-light interferometer and an established measurement system, namely a formtester with a tactile spherical stylus sensor, which is the most commonly used instrument in the industry. Furthermore, this paper shows that the combination between the modified white-light interferometer and an adequate measurement and processing strategy has enabled to obtain a good agreement between optical and tactile measurements of long inner cylindrical surfaces. A cloud of points (COP) measured with the modified white-light interferometer has presented a standard deviation of about 0.3 μm when it was compared with formtester measurement of the same parts.     

Diode-pumped Birefringent Tunable Nd:YAG Laser with Large Frequency Difference

A dual-frequency Nd: YAG laser which can output two frequencies with frequency difference of more than 5 gigaherz is developed. By inserting and moving an intracavity quartz crystal wedge in diode pumped Nd:YAG laser, It can be obtained and tuned frequency difference in a wide frequency range. The stabilization of frequency difference in free state is much better than that of birefringent dual-frequency He-Ne lasers at similar laboratory conditions. With such a large tunable frequency difference i.e. short synthetic wavelength, the laser may be used as the light source of absolute distance interferometers. In our experiment, the methods for tuning frequency difference by rotating and applying a tunable force on the intracavity quartz plate are also studied.     

Non-coherent noise reduction in digital holography based on root mean square technique

In this paper, the root mean square (rms) technique is applied in order to reduce the non-coherent noise in phase-contrast image. The proposed technique is applied to a sample of 200 μm step height nominally. The recorded off-axis interferograms generated from two different wavelengths are processed to obtain an object wave (amplitude and phase) for each wavelength separately. The independent phase maps are subtracted and a phase map for the beat-wavelength is obtained and converted to height map. The rms values of 10 pixels profiles from the obtained height map are calculated automatically to show the three-dimensional (3D) profile. The experimental results show that the non-coherent noise is reduced by the order of 90% when the rms technique is applied and the uncertainty in measurement has been found to be of the order of 1.5 μm. The proposed technique can provide a simple and real solution for measuring 3D objects having high abrupt height difference.