Development in laser interferometry for position sensing

Interferometric developments which improve the performance of the laser interferometer as a position sensing device are described. The double pass attachment is an optical accessory which doubles the resolution of the Hewlett-Packard linear and plane mirror interferometers. Unlike previous attempts to extend resolution optically, this device does not fold just one of the two interfering beams and hence does not introduce error due to its own motion. Simple addition of a quarter wave plate to the attachment gives a differential version of the plane mirror interferometer. Various configurations of this differential interferometer, and their application to machine tools and to integrated circuit lithographic and inspection equipment, are discussed. A new ‘wavelength tracking’ device, based on differential interferometry, directly and precisely monitors changes in laser wavelength inside a highly stable mechanical cavity. Easily incorporated as an additional interferometer axis, the device improves compensation for changes in laser wavelength.     

Velocity sensing interferometer (VISAR) modification

The VISAR (velocity interferometer system for any reflector) has become a common tool used in experiments where high surface velocities must be measured. A modification that uses previously wasted interferometer light to more than double output signals and to cancel noise is described. Laser power is used more efficiently, VISAR performance in the presence of intense target self-light is improved, and only two data signals are required instead of the usual three or four. Effects of changing light intensity and fringe visibility are eliminated using a novel detection system with a simplified solution for velocity.     

波长移相干涉仪的算法研究

叙述了波长移相干涉仪的基本原理,分析了其特点,对传统硬件移相干涉仪和波长移相干涉仪进行了比较,指出了它们的优缺点和应用范围.以美国New Focus公司的可调谐半导体激光器为例,简述了实现波长调谐的硬件.文中将波长移相干涉仪算法分成三类:加权多步波长移相算法、基于傅里叶变换的波长移相算法和多波长算法,对这三类算法进行了较详细的叙述和分析,指出了各自的优缺点和应用范围.基于傅里叶变换的波长移相算法,提出了结合差分运算的适合于台阶测量的新算法,克服了已有算法中需要参考基准和参考面的缺点,提高了算法的实用性.     

Four-point bisensitivity velocity interferometer with a multireflection etalon

A four-point bisensitivity velocity interferometer system for any reflector (VISAR) with a renovative delay etalon is proposed and demonstrated. In this interferometer, we introduce a new film-coating strategy to accurately measure small velocity with relatively short and cheap etalon. Laser pointing to the etalon is split into two beams with different incident angles with each beam going through the etalon in different path. The beam with the smaller incident angle is reflected three times before it leaves the etalon, while the other beam with larger incident angle goes through the etalon to and forth only once. The delay time of the laser beam with smaller incident angle is almost three times longer than that of the beam with larger incident angle. In the example of the laser with a smaller incident angle, the velocity per fringe of this interferometer can be reduced by approximately three times. The etalon is optimized so that four laser beams can be penetrated in the vertical direction at the meantime. With an etalon of 200 mm in diameter and 150 mm in length, a four-point bisensitivity velocity interferometer can achieve the velocity per fringe of 100 and 350 m/s fringe. A measurement has been successfully undertaken for the steel flyer driven by the explosive where the developed interferometer applies.     

Ultrafast Pockels cells for the infrared

The design and performance of a 2.25-cm(2)-aperture Pockels cell system for 10-mum radiation is described. Pulses as short as 90 ps can be reliably generated with this device.     

Fizeau interferometer system for fast high resolution studies of spectral line shapes

A monochromator∕Fizeau interferometer∕intensified CCD camera system is described that was developed for the measurement of the shape of spectral lines that are rapidly time varying. The most important operating parameter that determines the performance of the instrument is the size of the entrance aperture as this determines both the light throughput and the effective interferometer wavelength resolution. This paper discusses, both theoretically and experimentally, the effect of the finite source area on the instrumental resolution to assist in optimizing the choice of this parameter. A second effect that often produces a practical limit to the quality of the spectra is drift of the interferometer plates. Measurements of the shapes of spectral lines of ions and atoms ejected from the cathode spot of continuous and pulsed cathodic arcs are presented to demonstrate the utility of this instrument.     

Polarized light interferometer for laser fusion studies

A polarized light interferometer, suitable for the high-speed photography of microscopic objects in laser fusion experiments, is described. Based on a Wollaston prism as beam splitter, its main advantages are its relative simplicity, the absence of alignment and stability problems, and the extended spectral range down to 0.18 mum wavelength. The interferometer has been successfully applied in CO(2) and neodymium laser plasma interaction studies with laser illumination at 0.694 mum (ruby laser) and 0.265 mum (4th harmonic of the Nd(3+) laser) wavelength.     

基于双通道可调F-P干涉仪的机载测风激光雷达系统的鉴频器

利用双通道可调Fabry-Perot干涉仪作为机载测风激光雷达系统的鉴频器。该鉴频器可以克服现有测风雷达测速范围小的缺点,能够根据相对风速变化调整干涉仪的腔长,从而达到调整干涉仪透射谱中心频率的目的,从而间接实现测速范围动态可调,扩大测速范围的目的。采用此鉴频器可以实时测量飞行器与大气的相对风速。文中详述了测速原理和鉴频器结构,并给出机载雷达的系统参数,分析了系统的测量误差,结果表明:探测累积时间1s,测速范围为0~1000m/s时,探测高度可达30km,系统测量误差小于5m/s。     

Mirror Velocity Sampling Errors in a Michelson Interferometer

ABSTRACT

Mirror velocity variations in a continuous mirror drive Michelson interferometer result in erroneous interferogram sampling. The effects of both systematic and random mirror fluctuations are evaluated. Four methods of evaluation provide a means to quantify the importance of mirror velocity errors in the Fourier spectrometer's performance as a spectroradiometer. The four methods are time interval signal analysis, sine wave test, optical chopper modulation, and examination of consecutive interferograms. Examination of consecutive interferograms includes the monitoring of a constant blackbody infrared radiation source as well as an interposed ammonia sample cell for wavenumber axis registration. Each method furnishes a known input to the interferometer modulation equation (i.e. 2uv=f) and permits an internal validation of the interferometer mirror velocity evaluation results.     

具有隔离器功能的激光干涉仪的研究

提出了一种具有隔离器功能的激光干涉仪.既可以进行干涉测量,又具有隔离器功能,可以防止反射光回到光源,使光源保持稳定,确保了测量精度.该干涉仪由常规干涉仪和双级隔离器的结构有机的结合起来,其中某些元件合二为一,使一个元件起到双重功能的作用,同时使干涉光路和隔离光路也相互重合起来.理论分析和实验研究表明:该方案是可行的.隔离度与双级隔离器的隔离度相同,达到了48dB.该装置的干涉测量精度与一般干涉仪一样取决于激光波长,但该装置结构紧凑,简化了测量系统,实际使用更为方便.     

激光聚变冲击波速度测量光学系统设计

针对激光聚变冲击波速度测量的需求,设计了一种集被动式扫描高温计和主动式冲击波速度测量于一体的复合冲击波速度测量系统.通过采用多种耐辐射光学玻璃材料,实现了共用光路的400～700 nm耐辐射消色差设计;通过采用自动控制干涉仪简化了系统操作;主动测速系统通过切换不同焦距的中继成像镜头,实现了不同放大倍率的切换.系统的物方...     

Photonic Doppler velocimetry of laser-ablated ultrathin metals

Obtaining velocity information from the interaction of a laser pulse on a metal layer provides insight into the rapid dynamics of material removal and plasma plume physics during ablation. A traditional approach involves using a velocity interferometer system for any reflector (VISAR) on a reflective metal surface. However, when the target is a thin metal layer, the cohesion of the surface is quickly lost resulting in a large spread of particle velocities that cannot be easily resolved by VISAR. This is due to material ejection"confusing" the VISAR measurement surface, effectively washing out the spatial fringe visibility in the VISAR interferometer. A new heterodyne-based optical velocimeter method is the photonic Doppler velocimeter (PDV). Because PDV tracks motion in a frequency encoded temporal electro-optical signal, velocity information is preserved and allows for multiple velocity components to be recorded simultaneously. The challenge lies in extracting PDV velocity information at short (nanosecond) laser ablation time scales with rapidly varying heterodyne beats by using electronic, optical, and analytical techniques to recover the velocity information from a fleeting signal. Here we show how we have been able to obtain velocity information on the nanosecond time scale and are able to compare it to hydrodynamic simulations. Also, we examine refinements to our PDV system by increasing the bandwidth, utilizing different probes, and sampling different analysis techniques.     

A Scanning System for the Michelson Interferometer with a Linear Motor Based on a Permanent Magnet

A scanning system for the moving mirror of the Michelson interferometer is described. The system is based on a linear motor with a ring-shaped permanent magnet. The operating velocity of the mirror is about 4 cm/s; the shift from the equilibrium position, ±2.5 mm. A mathematical model of the control system is discussed. The electrical schematic circuit of the control unit and tests results of the control system are described.     

Optic-microwave mixing velocimeter for superhigh velocity measurement

The phenomenon that a light beam reflected off a moving object experiences a Doppler shift in its frequency underlies practical interferometric techniques for remote velocity measurements, such as velocity interferometer system for any reflector (VISAR), displacement interferometer system for any reflector (DISAR), and photonic Doppler velocimetry (PDV). While VISAR velocimeters are often bewildered by the fringe loss upon high-acceleration dynamic process diagnosis, the optic-fiber velocimeters such as DISAR and PDV, on the other hand, are puzzled by high velocity measurement over 10 km/s, due to the demand for the high bandwidth digitizer. Here, we describe a new optic-microwave mixing velocimeter (OMV) for super-high velocity measurements. By using currently available commercial microwave products, we have constructed a simple, compact, and reliable OMV device, and have successfully obtained, with a digitizer of bandwidth 6 GH only, the precise velocity history of an aluminum flyer plate being accelerated up to 11.2 km/s in a three stage gas-gun experiment.     

一种波长调制干涉仪光强实时反馈控制系统

提出了一种实时反馈控制系统,保证波长调制干涉仪的激光光强在波长调谐过程中的稳定性,以减小波长调制干涉仪因激光光强的波动产生的相位误差。该控制系统由光电探测器、数据采集卡、光电调幅器和控制软件等组成。实验结果表明,该系统的响应速度超过了干涉仪获取干涉图的速度,不仅能够稳定输出理想的光强值,而且还提高了干涉仪的测量精度。     

Measurement of a Michelson Interferometer Mirror Velocity

ABSTRACT

This article documents the design, construction, and implementation of a time interval analyzer (TIA) for measurement of the mirror velocity in a Michelson interferometer. The TIA, a precision counter measures the dynamic variation in the time intervals (i.e. frequency) of a signal. The helium-neon (HeNe) laser signal from the servo mirror control circuitry of a Michelson interferometer provides a nearly constant frequency source. The HeNe signal frequency is directly proportional to the interferometer mirror velocity. A constant mirror velocity is crucial to the proper operation of a Michelson interferometer which modulates the infrared radiation in a Fourier transform spectrometer. The TIA permits a critical evaluation of velocity variations in a single interferometer mirror scan via the time interval analysis of the HeNe laser signal.     

A proposed design for a polarization-insensitive optical interferometer system with subnanometric capability

A bidirectional, fringe-counting, two-beam interferometer system is described that can be used for precision length measurement with any laser source that is adequately coherent for the application. The two electrical phase-quadrature signals required for bidirectional electronic counting are obtained from photodetectors at the two interferometer outputs. A thin metal film design for the beam-splitter coating introduces the required phase difference of nearly 90° for both the perpendicular and parallel polarization components. Electronic alignment and control are performed by a system used to continuously monitor the signals produced from the outputs and automatically process these signals to achieve the optimum performance from the interferometer. Interferometers using the technique require a limited amount of optical alignment and all of the electronic adjustments are automatically controlled by the electronic system. These instruments are economical to manufacture and easy to apply in practice, readily achieving subnanometric accuracy in the measurement of changes in optical path.     

Mid-infrared optical coherence tomography

A time domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) system is described that uses mid-infrared light (6-8 microm). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first OCT system that operates in the mid-infrared spectral region. It has been designed to characterize bioengineered tissues in terms of their structure and biochemical composition. The system is based upon a free-space Michelson interferometer with a germanium beam splitter and a liquid nitrogen cooled HgCdTe detector. A key component of this work has been the development of a broadband quantum cascade laser source (InGaAs/AlInAs containing 11 different active regions of the three well vertical transition type) that emits continuously over the 6-8 microm wavelength range. This wavelength range corresponds to the so called "mid-infrared fingerprint region" which exhibits well-defined absorption bands that are specifically attributable to the absorbing molecules. Therefore, this technology provides an opportunity for optical coherence molecular imaging without the need for molecular contrast agents. Preliminary measurements are presented.     

双灵敏度VISAR测量的一种结构计

任意反射面的速度干涉仪(V ISAR)用来测量极高速运动的物体,但是由于探测仪器响应速度的限制,使探测仪器在被测目标开始运动的瞬间,无法分辨出移过的条纹数,导致整数条条纹的丢失。解决条纹丢失问题有多种方法,其中使用双灵敏度V ISAR是一种有效方法。通常双灵敏度测试系统都使用两套独立的速度干涉仪和探测仪器,这使得装置庞大并且昂贵,同时又增加安装、调试和维护的难度。提出一种双灵敏度测试系统,只使用一套速度干涉仪和探测仪器,即单速度干涉仪上的双灵敏度系统(DSSV I)。