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US 2015/0103356 A1Published application
Interferometer, System, and Method of Use
AssigneesDelft University of Technology, University of Rochester
InventorsJonathan D. Ellis, Josephus Wilhelmus Spronck
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A compact, balanced, up to three degrees of freedom measuring interferometer which enables fiber delivery of an optical source without periodic nonlinearity, an interferometer system, and method for using an interferometer to measure up to three degrees of freedom is disclosed.
Claims15
An interferometer comprising:
- a first beam splitter capable of splitting a first light beam having a first frequency to a reference detector, a measurement detector, and a reference mirror, wherein the first light beam is transmitted through the first beam splitter to the reference mirror and reflected back to the first beam splitter along the same path;
- a second beam splitter capable of splitting a second light beam having a second frequency to the reference detector, the measurement detector, and a measurement mirror, wherein the second light beam is transmitted through the second beam splitter to the measurement mirror and reflected back to the second beam splitter along the same path, and wherein the first light beam is spatially separated from the second light beam, the first and second frequencies having a different frequency, and the path of the first light beam through the first beam splitter is the same length as the path of the second light beam through the second beam splitter;
- and
- wherein the path of the first light beam transmitted from the first beam splitter to the reference detector is in the path of the second light beam transmitted from the second beam splitter to the reference detector such that a reference interference signal is detected at the reference detector and the path of the second light beam transmitted from the second beam splitter to the measurement detector is in the path of the first light beam transmitted from the first beam splitter to the measurement detector such that a measurement interference signal is detected at the measurement detector.
1 more element
A method of using an interferometer to measure a target moved from a first position to a second position, comprising:
- directing a first light beam having a first frequency to a first beam splitter and splitting the first light beam to a reference detector, a measurement detector, and a reference mirror;
- transmitting the first light beam through the first beam splitter to the reference mirror and reflecting back to the first beam splitter along the same path;
- directing a second light beam having a second frequency to a second beam splitter and splitting the second light beam to the reference detector, the measurement detector, and a measurement mirror of a target in a first position;
- transmitting the second light beam through the second beam splitter to the measurement mirror and reflecting back to the second beam splitter along the same path, wherein the first light beam is spatially separated from the second light beam, the first and second light beams have a different frequency, the path of the first light beam through the first beam splitter is the same length as the path of the second light beam through the second beam splitter, the path of the first light beam transmitted from the first beam splitter to the reference detector is in the path of the second light beam transmitted from the second beam splitter to the reference detector creating a reference interference signal, and the path of the second light beam transmitted from the second beam splitter to the measurement detector is in the path of the first light beam transmitted from the first beam splitter to the measurement detector creating a measurement interference signal for the measurement mirror;
- detecting the reference interference signal at the reference detector and the measurement interference signal at the measurement detector for the target in the first position;
- moving the target to a second position,
- detecting the reference interference signal at the reference detector and the measurement interference signal at the measurement detector for the target in the second position, and
- calculating the difference in at least one of the tilt, tip and displacement values of the target from the first and second positions.
5 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.