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Abstract:

The article illustrates the use of Fourier optics to describe the operation of two-beam scanning laser interferometers. It deals with the effect of diffraction on the spatial periodicity of a monochromatic and coherent beam. Particular attention is given to the analysis of systematic errors in high-accuracy laser metrology. The article reviews the special case of plane wave and Gaussian illuminations, examines how beam truncation affects the period of traveling fringes and presents a general relation between the relative wavelength deviation and the impulse standard deviation of the photons.

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Received: 18 February 1998 / Revised: 21 October 1998 / Accepted: 16 November 1998

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Bergamin, A., Cavagnero, G., Cordiali, L. et al. A Fourier optics model of two-beam scanning laser interferometers. Eur. Phys. J. D 5, 433–440 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1007/s100530050275

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s100530050275

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