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Shearing Interferometer
The shearing interferometer is an extremely simple means to observe interference and to use this phenomenon to test the collimation of light beams, especially from laser sources which have a coherence length which is usually significantly longer than the thickness of the shear plate (see graphics) so that the basic condition for interference is fulfilled. Function The testing device consists of a high-quality optical glass, like N-BK7, with extremely flat optical surfaces that are usually at a slight angle to each other. When a plane wave is incident at an angle of 45°, which gives maximum sensitivity, it is reflected two times. The two reflections are laterally separated due to the finite thickness of the plate and by the wedge. This separation is referred to as the ''shear'' and has given the instrument its name. The shear can also be produced by gratings. Parallel-sided shear plates are sometimes used, but the interpretation of the interference fringes of wedged plates is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Interference (optics)
In physics, interference is a phenomenon in which two coherence (physics), coherent waves are combined by adding their intensities or displacements with due consideration for their phase (waves), phase difference. The resultant wave may have greater amplitude (constructive interference) or lower amplitude (destructive interference) if the two waves are in phase or out of phase, respectively. Interference effects can be observed with all types of waves, for example, Light wave, light, Radio wave, radio, sound wave, acoustic, surface wave, surface water waves, gravity waves, or matter waves as well as in loudspeakers as electrical waves. Etymology The word ''interference'' is derived from the Latin words ''inter'' which means "between" and ''fere'' which means "hit or strike", and was used in the context of wave superposition by Thomas Young (scientist), Thomas Young in 1801. Mechanisms The superposition principle#Wave interference, principle of superposition of waves s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Collimated
A collimated beam of light or other electromagnetic radiation has parallel rays, and therefore will spread minimally as it propagates. A laser beam is an archetypical example. A perfectly collimated light beam, with no divergence, would not disperse with distance. However, diffraction prevents the creation of any such beam. Light can be approximately collimated by a number of processes, for instance by means of a collimator. Perfectly collimated light is sometimes said to be ''focused at infinity''. Thus, as the distance from a point source increases, the spherical wavefronts become flatter and closer to plane waves, which are perfectly collimated. Other forms of electromagnetic radiation can also be collimated. In radiology, X-rays are collimated to reduce the volume of the patient's tissue that is irradiated, and to remove stray photons that reduce the quality of the x-ray image ("film fog"). In scintigraphy, a gamma ray collimator is used in front of a detector to allow only ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laser
A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word ''laser'' originated as an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation. The first laser was built in 1960 by Theodore Maiman at Hughes Research Laboratories, based on theoretical work by Charles H. Townes and Arthur Leonard Schawlow and the optical amplifier patented by Gordon Gould. A laser differs from other sources of light in that it emits light that is coherence (physics), ''coherent''. Spatial coherence allows a laser to be focused to a tight spot, enabling uses such as optical communication, laser cutting, and Photolithography#Light sources, lithography. It also allows a laser beam to stay narrow over great distances (collimated light, collimation), used in laser pointers, lidar, and free-space optical communication. Lasers can also have high temporal coherence, which permits them to emit light ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coherence Length
In physics, coherence length is the propagation distance over which a coherent wave (e.g. an electromagnetic wave) maintains a specified degree of coherence. Wave interference is strong when the paths taken by all of the interfering waves differ by less than the coherence length. A wave with a longer coherence length is closer to a perfect sinusoidal wave. Coherence length is important in holography and telecommunications engineering. This article focuses on the coherence of classical electromagnetic fields. In quantum mechanics, there is a mathematically analogous concept of the quantum coherence length of a wave function. Formulas In radio-band systems, the coherence length is approximated by :L = \frac \approx \frac ~, where \, c \, is the speed of light in vacuum, \, n \, is the refractive index of the medium, and \, \mathrm f \, is the bandwidth of the source or \, \lambda \, is the signal wavelength and \, \Delta \lambda \, is the width of the range of wavelengths in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diffraction Grating
In optics, a diffraction grating is an optical grating with a periodic structure that diffraction, diffracts light, or another type of electromagnetic radiation, into several beams traveling in different directions (i.e., different diffraction angles). The emerging coloration is a form of structural coloration. The directions or diffraction angles of these beams depend on the wave (light) Angle of incidence (optics), incident angle to the diffraction grating, the spacing or periodic distance between adjacent diffracting elements (e.g., parallel slits for a transmission grating) on the grating, and the wavelength of the incident light. The grating acts as a dispersion (optics), dispersive element. Because of this, diffraction gratings are commonly used in monochromators and spectrometers, but other applications are also possible such as optical encoders for high-precision motion control and wavefront measurement. For typical applications, a reflection (optics), reflective grati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wavelength
In physics and mathematics, wavelength or spatial period of a wave or periodic function is the distance over which the wave's shape repeats. In other words, it is the distance between consecutive corresponding points of the same ''phase (waves), phase'' on the wave, such as two adjacent crests, troughs, or zero crossings. Wavelength is a characteristic of both traveling waves and standing waves, as well as other spatial wave patterns. The multiplicative inverse, inverse of the wavelength is called the ''spatial frequency''. Wavelength is commonly designated by the Greek letter lambda (''λ''). For a modulated wave, ''wavelength'' may refer to the carrier wavelength of the signal. The term ''wavelength'' may also apply to the repeating envelope (mathematics), envelope of modulated waves or waves formed by Interference (wave propagation), interference of several sinusoids. Assuming a sinusoidal wave moving at a fixed phase velocity, wave speed, wavelength is inversely proportion ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Refractive Index
In optics, the refractive index (or refraction index) of an optical medium is the ratio of the apparent speed of light in the air or vacuum to the speed in the medium. The refractive index determines how much the path of light is bent, or refraction, refracted, when entering a material. This is described by Snell's law of refraction, , where and are the angle of incidence (optics), angle of incidence and angle of refraction, respectively, of a ray crossing the interface between two media with refractive indices and . The refractive indices also determine the amount of light that is reflectivity, reflected when reaching the interface, as well as the critical angle for total internal reflection, their intensity (Fresnel equations) and Brewster's angle. The refractive index, n, can be seen as the factor by which the speed and the wavelength of the radiation are reduced with respect to their vacuum values: the speed of light in a medium is , and similarly the wavelength in that me ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Types Of Interferometers
An interferometry, interferometer is a device for extracting information from the superposition of multiple waves. Field and linear interferometers *Air-wedge shearing interferometer *Astronomical interferometer / Michelson stellar interferometer *Classical interference microscopy *Bath interferometer (common path) *Cyclic interferometer *Diffraction-grating interferometer (white light) *Double-slit experiment, Double-slit interferometer *Dual-polarization interferometry *Fabry–Pérot interferometer *Fizeau interferometer *Fourier-transform spectroscopy, Fourier-transform interferometer *Fresnel interferometer (e.g. Fresnel biprism, Fresnel mirror or Lloyd's mirror) *Fringes of Equal Chromatic Order interferometer (FECO) *Gabor hologram *Gires–Tournois etalon *Heterodyne interferometer (see heterodyne) *Holographic interferometry, Holographic interferometer *Jamin interferometer *Laser Doppler vibrometer *Linnik interferometer (microscopy) *Michelson interferometer#Laser une ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Air-wedge Shearing Interferometer
The air-wedge shearing interferometer is probably the simplest type of interferometer designed to visualize the disturbance of the wavefront after propagation through a test object. This interferometer is based on utilizing a thin wedged air-gap between two optical glass surfaces and can be used with virtually any light source even with non-coherent white light. Setup An air-wedge shearing interferometer is described inG.S. Sarkisov, ''Shearing interferometer with an air wedge for electron density diagnostics in a dense plasma'', Instruments and Experimental Techniques, vol.39, No.5, pp.727-731 (1996). and was employed in set of experiments described in.S.V. Granov, V.I. Konov, A.A. Malyutin, O.G. Tsarkova, I.S. Yatskovsky, F. Dausinger, High resolution interferometric diagnostics of plasmas produced by ultrashot laser pulses, Laser Physics, 13, 3, pp.386-396 (2003). This interferometer consists of two optical glass wedges (~2-5deg), pushed together and then slightly separated fro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
