Interferometer for absolute distance measurement

US5781295A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• Carl Zeiss Jena GmbH · DE

Inventors

• Werner Fuchs · Herrsching am Ammersee, DE
• Andreas Wolfram · Karlsburg, DE
• Karl-Heinz Bechstein · Jena, DE
• Klaus Salewski · Greifswald, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Aug 8, 1996
• Grant date: Jul 14, 1998
• Expiry date: Aug 8, 2016

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G01B2290/60
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

An interferometer for absolute distance measurement with two lasers, one of which is tunable with respect to frequency. A device for collinear superposition of the laser beams is arranged downstream of the lasers. Further, interferometer units are provided whose optical path lengths differ from one another. An individual acousto-optical modulator (AOM) is arranged downstream of the device for superposing the beams. Light-conducting elements for guiding the beams are arranged between the AOM, between the AOM and at least one first beam splitter arranged downstream of the AOM, and between the light outputs of the first beam splitter and the light inputs of one or more interferometer units arranged downstream and/or within these interferometer units.