MEMS device for interferometric spectroscopy

A system for operating on incoming light, comprising:

• one or more optical elements that, upon application of a varying input signal thereto, cause a change to an optical characteristic of the one or more optical elements, thereby resulting in a changing interference pattern produced by the incoming light incident on the one or more optical elements, the one or more optical elements including a first plate and a second plate disposed parallel to the first plate such that a gap between the first plate and the second plate is formed,
• wherein each of the first plate the second plate are partially transmissive and partially reflective,
• wherein the optical characteristic comprises a material having an index of refraction and dielectric constant that can vary that is deposited in the gap between the first plate and the second plate,
• wherein the optical characteristic comprises an index of refraction of the material, and
• wherein a value of the index of refraction is a function of the varying input signal;
• a photo-detector configured to detect an intensity of light output from the one or more optical elements during application of the varying input signal;
• a detector configured to detect one or more of a capacitance, voltage or current associated with the optical characteristic relative to the application of the varying input signal;
• and
• one or more processors configured to:
• obtain, from the detector, a plurality of values each representing the optical characteristic,
• obtain, from the photo-detector, a plurality of signal values representing the intensity of the light output from the one or more optical elements, and
• generate a plurality of transformation values respectively based on at least some of the plurality of values.

A method for operating on incoming light, the method being implemented by one or more processors executing computer program instructions, the method comprising:

• obtaining, from a detector configured to detect one or more of a capacitance, voltage or current associated with an optical characteristic that comprises a distance between two parallel plates that changes upon application of a varying input signal, the two parallel plates being partially transmissive and partially reflective, wherein a plurality of values representing the optical characteristic are obtained from the detection of the one or more of the capacitance, voltage or current, and wherein upon application of the varying input signal, the two parallel plates cause a change to the optical characteristic thereby resulting in a changing interference pattern produced by incoming light incident on the two parallel plates;
• obtaining, from a photo-detector configured to detect an intensity of light output from the two parallel plates during application of the varying input signal, a plurality of signal values representing the intensity of the light output from the two parallel plates,
• generating a plurality of transformation values respectively based on at least some of the plurality of values;
• and
• using at least some of the plurality of transformation values and at least some of the plurality of signal values to determine a spectrum of the incoming light.

A system for operating on incoming light based on a varying input signal and a trigger signal being provided thereto, the system comprising:

• two parallel plates that are partially transmissive and partially reflective that, upon application of the varying input signal, cause a change to an optical characteristic of the two parallel plates, thereby resulting in a changing interference pattern produced by the incoming light incident on the two parallel plates;
• a photo-detector configured to detect, based on the trigger signal having a first frequency, an intensity of light output from the two parallel plates during application of the varying input signal;
• and
• a detector configured to detect, based on the trigger signal, one or more of a capacitance, voltage or current associated with the optical characteristic during the application of the varying input signal.