Toroidal multipass absorption device
AssigneeBattelle Memorial Institute
InventorsBruce E. Bernacki, Mark C. Phillips
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A toroidal optical device can include a ring mirror defining a toroidal optical cavity symmetric about an axis and an optical coupler situated inside the toroidal optical cavity. The optical coupler can be situated to direct an input light first received from outside the toroidal optical cavity propagating inside the toroidal optical cavity, to multiply reflect from the ring mirror inside the toroidal optical cavity. A method includes producing one or more additional ring mirrors defining a toroidal optical cavity symmetric about a sagittal axis using a first ring mirror as a master form, and affixing an optical coupler inside the optical cavity to at least one of the one or more additional ring mirrors.
Claims24
An apparatus, comprising:
- a ring mirror defining a toroidal optical cavity symmetric about an axis, wherein the surface of the ring mirror does not include an opening;
- an optical coupler comprising a reflector including a reflective surface, the optical coupler situated inside the toroidal optical cavity, attached to an inner surface of the ring mirror, and situated to direct an input light, first received from outside the toroidal optical cavity propagating inside the toroidal optical cavity, to multiply reflect from the ring mirror inside the toroidal optical cavity;
- wherein the reflective surface is situated to receive the first received input light;
- and
- wherein the reflective surface is angled toward the axis relative to a plane that is tangent to an outer radial position of the toroidal optical cavity and parallel to the axis.
A method, comprising:
- producing one or more additional ring mirrors defining a toroidal optical cavity symmetric about a sagittal axis using a first ring mirror as a master form, wherein the surface of each ring mirror does not include an opening;
- and
- affixing an optical coupler inside the optical cavity to an inner surface of at least one of the one or more additional ring mirrors, the optical coupler situated to direct an input light, first received from outside the toroidal optical cavity propagating inside the toroidal optical cavity, to multiply reflect from the ring mirror inside the toroidal optical cavity.
A method, comprising:
- introducing a gas or gas-phase analyte into an optical cavity defined by a torus structure wherein the torus structure includes at least one ring mirror with a surface of revolution along the circumference that is rotationally symmetric, the surface of the ring mirror not including an opening, the at least one ring mirror configured to provide a multipass optical path of predetermined path length;
- and
- directing an input light into the optical cavity at a preselected angle and wavelength using an optical coupler affixed within the optical cavity to the at least one ring mirror, the optical coupler configured to allow the input light to enter into and exit from the optical cavity.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.