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Measurement of steep aspheric surfaces using an anamorphic probe
Amiya Biswas1, Jeremy Coupland
1Wolfson School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Loughborough University, Ashby Road, Loughborough, Leicestershire, United Kingdom. A.Biswas@lboro.ac.uk
Applied Optics
|April 12, 2008
Summary
This study enhances synthetic aperture interferometry for measuring complex shapes. New optics improve numerical aperture and light efficiency, enabling precise measurement of aspheric surfaces.
Area of Science:
- Optical Engineering
- Metrology
- Interferometry
Background:
- Synthetic aperture interferometry (SAI) was proposed for in-process measurement of aspheric surfaces.
- Previous fiber-optic probes lacked sufficient numerical aperture (NA) for steep surfaces and suffered efficiency loss with increased NA.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an improved probe for synthetic aperture interferometry.
- To enhance the numerical aperture (NA) and light-gathering efficiency of the probe for measuring aspheric optics.
Main Methods:
- Introduced supplementary optics to increase the probe's numerical aperture.
- Adopted an anamorphic optical design to boost light-gathering efficiency.
- Utilized a scanning probe with enhanced optical components.
Main Results:
- The new probe design successfully increased numerical aperture.
- Anamorphic optics significantly improved light-gathering efficiency.
- Demonstrated capability by measuring a spherical test optic of known form.
Conclusions:
- The enhanced probe design overcomes limitations of previous fiber-optic probes for SAI.
- The improved probe is capable of measuring aspheric surfaces with greater accuracy and efficiency.
- This advancement facilitates in-process metrology for complex optical components.
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