Coaxial Mirau interferometer

Opt Lett. 2002 Jul 1;27(13):1153-5. doi: 10.1364/ol.27.001153.

Abstract

We describe a new interferometric configuration for optical coherence tomography that is based on the Mirau interferometer. It uses the photodetector included in a superluminescent diode package, which makes possible a highly miniaturized device. Other advantages of the configuration include its totally coaxial structure, confocal microscope operation, availability of the full working distance of the imaging objective, and no central obscuration. Fundamental characteristics such as resolution and dynamic range are discussed, and the result of measurement on a rough metallic surface is presented.