Rapid, high-resolution scanning of flat and curved regions for gated optical imaging
US6034804A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 31, 1998 |
| Grant date | Mar 7, 2000 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Mar 31, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG02B26/105
- WIPO fieldOptics
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A scanning system for scanning in first and second dimensions a desired surface topology of a sample, the scanning device comprising: a light source for producing a collimated light beam; a first scanning device responsive to the collimated light beam from the light source for producing a first scanned beam in a first dimension with a constant optical path length; and a second scanning device coupled between the first scanning device and the sample for focusing and scanning the first scanned beam in a second dimension onto the surface region of the sample to cause the collimated light beam to scan the surface topology of the sample with a constant optical path length in each of the first and second dimensions of the desired topology of the sample. In a second embodiment of the invention, a beam of light is focused by a first lens before a scanner and the scanner is rotated. Second and third lenses arranged in a 4-f combination are used to image rotated focal spots along a spherical convex surface of a sample while the optical path length stays constant. Slow scanning in other dimensions can be performed by mechanical means.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.