SmarAlign Window
The SmarAlign window is a unique feature of the PICOSCALE Interferometer, designed to simplify and accelerate sensor head alignment. It provides a real-time visual representation of the interference signal by utilizing the unsused port of the beam splitter. The coarse grinding shows reflections of both reference and target beam and by aligning both on top of each other, the user can instantly veryfy optimal alignment and signal quality.
With SmarAlign, setup becomes intuitive and efficient — eliminating guesswork and reducing preparation time to a minimum. Experience high-precision displacement measurements with unmatched ease of use.
Differential Measurements
One major advantage of Michelson-type laser interferometers are the possibility to perform direct differential measurements. By utilizing a sensor head without reference mirror, the user can chose his own reference point. By this, both reference and measurement beam are subject to the identical environmental influences, suppression the influence on the measurements completely. Additionally, common mode vibrations of reference point and target points are intrinsically filetered out as well. The PICOSCALE laser interferometer offers these options for robust, high-precision displacement measurements without the need to post process the data.
Besides the option for external references, PICOSCALE Sensor Heads can be configured in different ways to fit into any setup:
Michelson interferometer configurations
In the standard configuration of a PICOSCALE sensor head, the reference mirror is coated to one of the side surfaces of the beam splitter cube.
As a variant, the beam splitter can be coated to the front surface of the beam splitter cube. This can be advantagous in setups with certain space constraints as the sensor head can "look around the corner".
Another variant of PICOSCALE sensor heads do not have a reference mirror at all. This is unique for Michelson interferometers and allows to perform differential measurements of two targets with several advantages.
Advantages of Michelson Interferometry
Michelson interferometers offer exceptional precision and reliability by splitting and recombining light to measure smallest displacements, vibrations, and refractive changes with nanometer or sub-nanometer accuracy. Their versatility, non-contact operation, and ability to perform in demanding environments like UHV or cryo-temperature make them indispensable for applications in metrology, optics, and advanced research.