Characterization of Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of Deformable Mirrors

摘要

Innovative technologies are needed to support and augment the development of various types of deformable mirrors (DM), such as Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS), segmented, bimorph and membrane types that are currently used in adaptive-optic (AO) systems. The paper discusses the results of initial studies that, could, potentially, be employed for full characterization of the dynamic behavior of adaptive optics mirrors. The experimental data were obtained from a typical bimorph mirror using both, a Shack-Hartman wavefront sensor (SHWFS) and an Imaging Laser Doppler Vibrometer (ILDV) developed exclusively by AS&T Inc. These two sensors were employed for quantitative measurement of both the spatial and temporal dynamics of the DM under broadband excitation via the piezo electric drive elements. The need to characterize the spatial and temporal dynamic response of current and future DM mirror designs is essential for optimizing their performance to a level adequate for high bandwidth AO systems, such as those employed for real-time compensation of wavefront perturbations.