Variable interferometric device and a process for the production of the same

A variable interferometric device comprising a Fabry-Perot interferometer including a pair of reflecting substances facing each other with a space therebetween formed by spacers and a means for deforming at least one of the reflecting substances constituting said Fabry-Perot interferometer to thereby change the interferometric characteristics of said Fabry-Perot interferometer, wherein said means for deforming at least one of the reflecting substances produces an electrostatic force between said pair of reflecting substances to thereby deform at least one of said reflecting substances.

A variable interferometric device comprising a Fabry-Perot interferometer including a pair of reflecting substances facing each other with a space therebetween formed by spacers and a means for deforming at least one of the reflecting substances constituting said Fabry-Perot interferometer to thereby change the interferometric characteristics of said Fabry-Perot interferometer, wherein said means for deforming at least one of the reflecting substances produces an electrostatic force between said pair of reflecting substances to thereby deform at least one of said reflecting substances,

• wherein each of said reflecting substances is composed of a substrate and a thin electrode formed on said substrate, whereby at least one of said reflecting substances is deformed by an electrostatic force produced by the application of a voltage of said thin metal films, which causes a volume variation in the space, the volume of which determines the interferometric characteristics of the Fabry-Perot interferometer.

A variable interferometric device comprising a Fabry-Perot interferometer including a pair of reflecting substances facing each other with a space therebetween formed by spacers and a means for deforming at least one of the reflecting substances constituting said Fabry-Perot interferometer to thereby change the interferometric characteristics of said Fabry-Perot interferometer, wherein said means for deforming at least one of the reflecting substances produces a magnetic field in the vicinity of said pair of reflecting substances to thereby deform at least one of said reflecting substances.

A variable interferometric device comprising a Fabry-Perot interferometer constituted by joining a first reflecting substance to a second reflecting substance, said first reflecting substance being provided with a hollow in a surface thereof facing said second reflecting substance, resulting in a space formed by said hollow between said first and second reflecting substances.

A process for the production of an interferometric device comprising:

• forming spacers and low melting point glass films on at least one of a pair of reflecting substances constituting a Fabry-Perot interferometer,
• subjecting said pair of reflecting substances to a pressing and heating treatment to join said reflecting substances to each other with a space therebetween formed by said spacers, and
• disposing an optical system which applies light to said reflecting substances and which detects the light from said reflecting substances, and a means which changes the interferometric characteristics of said interferometer.

A process according to claim 11, wherein said low melting point glass films contain at least SiO.sub.2 and PbO and have a softening point ranging from 350.degree. to 480.degree. C., said glass films being formed by the sputtering method.

An optical sensor comprising a light source, a first Fabry-Perot interferometric device, the interferometric characteristics of which vary with the physical quantity of the object to be measured, a light-dividing means for dividing the light from the light source into a first light beam and a second light beam, a second Fabry-Perot interferometric device functioning as a reference standard, the operational conditions of which are set at fixed values, a first photodetector for receiving the first light beam from said light-dividing means through the second Fabry-Perot interferometric device, a second photodetector for receiving the second light beam from said light dividing means through the second Fabry-Perot interferometric device, and a signal-processing circuit for comparing the output signal from the second photodetector to thereby determine the physical quantity of the object to be measured.

An optical sensor comprising a light source, a first Fabry-Perot interferometric device, the interferometric characteristics of which vary with the physical quantity of the object to be measured, a light-dividing means for dividing the light from the light source into a first light beam and a second light beam, second and third Fabry-Perot interferometric devices functioning as reference standards, the operational conditions of which are set at fixed values, a first photodetector for receiving the first light beam from said light-dividing means through the second Fabry-Perot interferometric device, a second photodetector for receiving the second light beam from said light-dividing means through the third Fabry-Perot interferometric device, and a signal-processing circuit for comparing the output signal from the first photodetector with the output signal from the second photodetector to thereby determine the physical quantity of the object to be measured.

A spectrometer comprising a Fabry-Perot interferometer including a pair of reflecting substances facing each other with a space therebetween formed by spacers and a means for deforming at least one of the reflecting substances constituting said Fabry-Perot interferometer to thereby change the interferometric characteristics of said Fabry-Perot interferometer, wherein one of said reflecting substances is replaced by a substrate on which a photodetector is formed, resulting in a single body structure incorporating said Fabry-Perot interferometer and said photodetector into a single body.