Wide Dynamic Beam Size Range Lateral-Shear Interferometer

摘要

A novel method for testing the collimation of coherent optical beam is presented. Two prisms are used to define a thin airwedge with a wedge angle. A wide range of beam sizes can be tested down to a few millimeters in diameter. Byredirecting the transmitted beam back to the air wedge so that it experiences a shear in the reversed direction, a double-shearing interferometry can be established. The gap separation and wedge angle can be varied to maintain highsensitivity (twice that of the wedge plate design) over the wide beam size range.