In-line measurement of phase-shift non linearity

Abstract

One of the principal limitations of phase-shift interferometry is the shift non linearity. We propose two methods for measuring this non linearity, one applicable to the registration of a limited number of interferograms (3 or 4) and the other applicable to many interferograms (typically 16). We see two main advantages in these methods: first, they require no extra instrumentation, and, secondly, shift non linearity is measured in situ , that is particularly important in the case of mechanical phase shift. Experiments confirm the validity of the corrections , allowing in our case reduction of systematic errors by 30 to 45%.