Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 23, 2026

The Generation of Higher-order Laguerre-Gauss Optical Beams for High-precision Interferometry
Published on: August 12, 2013
Correction of wave-front errors caused by the slight tilt of a reference beam in phase-shifting interferometry
Lu-Zhong Cai1, Ming-Zhao He, Qing Liu
1Department of Optics, Shandong University, Jinan 250100, China. lzcai@sdu.edu.cn
Abstract:
In standard phase-shifting interferometry the reference beam is supposed to be a plane wave exactly normal to the recording plane. A slight tilt of the reference beam, however, may occur in practice, and it will introduce phase distortion for the reconstructed object wave front. The effects of reference wave tilt on the wave reconstruction are analyzed, and a novel method is proposed to correct the errors caused by this tilt. This method is simple and convenient without the need of any additional optical devices and measurements, and it can be used for both the smooth and the diffuse object surfaces. The effectiveness of this method is verified by a series of computer simulations.
Related Concept Videos
Common Leveling Mistakes and Errors
Influence of Earth's Curvature and Atmospheric Refraction on Leveling
Distance Corrections
Beams with Unsymmetric Loadings
The first moment-area theorem determines the slope at any point on the beam. This theorem indicates that the change in slope between two points on a beam...
Errors in Taping
Adjusting a Traverse

