Photonics Dictionary: S

Sagnac interferometry is a technique used to measure rotation or angular velocity based on the principle of interference. It relies on the Sagnac effect, named after the French physicist Georges...

An interferometer in which interference is produced between wavefronts that are sheared in the sample object by a small lateral distance.

An instrument that divides a single laser beam in two and uses one half as a sensing beam and the other as a reference beam, then recombines the two and measures any phase shift between them. The...

A plane-parallel interferometer that yields extremely high contrast over a wide range of finesse values without significantly reducing transmission.

A pulsed interferometer that permits the continuous quantitative mapping of the surface deformation of an adaptive optical element (e.g., a deformable mirror) and provides the capability for...

A representation of the shape of a surface, including any roughness or other irregularities. The profile can be generated by direct measurements, as by a stylus, or by remote measurement, as by an...