Abstract
A fiber–optic-based interferometer has been designed, constructed, and applied to plasma measurements in pulsed-power systems. The beam from a 1310 nm solid-state diode laser is coupled into a single-mode fiber and split into two beams, one of which was passed through an acousto-optic modulator to frequency shift the light. Both beams travel through approximately 30 m of fiber, with the probe volume consisting of a short air or vacuum gap in the probe beam fiber where the light is collimated and collected by lenses. The beams are then recombined on a photodiode, producing a time-varying sinusoidal intensity signal that is phase modulated with the presence of a plasma in the probe volume. This configuration allows for remote measurements of plasma electron number density, and is robust with respect to vibration in the plasma source and electromagnetic interference. Tests indicate that phase measurement accuracies of ±0.045 rad corresponding to number density accuracies of ±1.2×1019 m−2 at 1310 nm are achievable with this device. A description of this interferometer, including refinements needed to achieve these accuracies, is presented along with the results of tests performed on a coaxial plasma gun.
Published Version
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