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US 2002/0159068 A1Published application
Interferometer
OwnerTilman Pfau, Yuri Ovchinnikovinventors
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OwnerTilman Pfau, Yuri Ovchinnikovinventors
Estimating the term…
The present invention relates to an interferometer comprising: at least one multimode waveguide 1, light or matter beam input means 2 for inputting a primary beam ILB under a specified primary angle α into the multimode waveguide 1 so as to generate an interference between two or more populated modes of the multimode waveguide 1, and at least one light or matter beam processing means 8 for processing one or more secondary light or matter beams OLB1, OLB2 exiting the multimode waveguide 1. This waveguide-interferometer thus provides a small distance between the transmission fringes, which can be used as a fine ruler for the precision positioning of different objects. For example, it can be used for the precise translation of samples in electron lithography and in different types of high-resolution microscopes. The non-uniform structure of the fringes allows precisely to determine the absolute distance d between the mirrors M1 and M2 used as a preferred waveguide 1 of the interferometer. Furthermore, the position of the transmission fringes of the interferometer depends on the light wavelength, which allows to use it for spectrum analyzing and also for separation and mixing of different frequency components of light. In case the waveguide 1 is made of an active optical material, the interferometer can be can be used as a switch to switch the light between the two different output channels.
An interferometer comprising:
An interferometer according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the multimode waveguide (1) comprises two substantially plane mirrors (M1, M2) capable of at least partly reflecting the beam, wherein the primary beam (ILB) is inputted at a first end face between the mirrors (M1, M2) and the secondary beam (OLB) exits the multimode waveguide (1) from between the mirrors (M1, M2) at a second end face thereof, wherein the primary angle α preferably satisfies the following condition:
An interferometer according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the multimode waveguide (1) comprises a dielectric active material having a refractive index which can be varied preferably by applying a specific voltage to a plurality of electrodes (5;
An interferometer according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the multimode waveguide (1) comprises a planar dielectric material and is provided on a surface of a dielectric substrate (10).
An interferometer according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the multimode waveguide (1) is a one-dimensional multimode waveguide (1).
An interferometer according to one or more of the preceding claims used for switching optical signals and/or used as a wavelength selective cross-connect,
An interferometer according to one or more of the preceding claims used for switching optical signals and/or used as a wavelength selective cross-connect,
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.