METHOD FOR POSITIONING THE MIRRORS OF A TRIPLE AXIS LASER GYROMETER, IN PARTICULAR WHEN STARTING THE GYROMETER

摘要

In a method for positioning three translatable mirrors in a device that includes three laser cavities arranged in a ring, each of the three laser cavities includes an optical amplification medium that can be excited to generate light waves. Each of the three laser cavities also includes an optical cavity formed by a set of mirrors including two of the translatable mirrors, the length of the optical cavity depending on the position of the two translatable mirrors, wherein the two translatable mirrors can be moved within position ranges imparting to the optical cavity lengths at which the amplification medium generates at least one laser wave. Each of the three translatable mirrors is used in the formation of two of the three optical cavities. The method includes the phase of prepositioning the three mirrors at an initial triplet of predetermined respective positions. The method also includes the phase of simultaneously moving in translation the three mirrors within ranges having a same amplitude that is lower than or equal to the intermode of the optical cavity having the highest intermode, to ensure that each of the optical cavities has a length for which the amplification medium provides a maximum gain. The intensities of the laser waves flowing respectively through each of the optical cavities are measured for each triplet of positions assumed by the mirrors. The method also includes the phase of determining, from the three triplets of mirror positions that respectively allowed each of the three cavities to provide a maximum intensity, the length of each of the three cavities at which the cavity provides a maximum intensity. The method further includes the phase of determining a single final triplet of mirror positions for simultaneously imparting to the three lengths at which they provide a maximum intensity. The method also includes the phase of positioning the mirrors according to the final position triplet. The invention can be used in positioning and navigation.