Interferometric but nonspectroscopic technique for measuring the      thickness of a transparent plate

John C. Brasunas; G. Mark Cushman

doi:10.1117/12.206585

1 July 1995 Interferometric but nonspectroscopic technique for measuring the thickness of a transparent plate

John C. Brasunas, G. Mark Cushman

Author Affiliations +

Optical Engineering, Vol. 34, Issue 7, (July 1995). https://doi.org/10.1117/12.206585

Abstract

A simple technique is presented for estimating the thickness of a transparent plate. Using a laser source and detector, the transmitted light is measured as a function of angle of incidence. With prior knowledge of the refractive index of the plate at the laser wavelength, the observed fringes can be processed to estimate the plate thickness. The technique works with a modest degree of wedging, as long as fringes are discernible. Formal estimates of the error budget indicate the accuracy of this method is approximately 1 μm. If fringes are measured versus both angle and wavelength, it should be possible to estimate both thickness and refractive index.

Citation Download Citation

John C. Brasunas and G. Mark Cushman "Interferometric but nonspectroscopic technique for measuring the thickness of a transparent plate," Optical Engineering 34(7), (1 July 1995). https://doi.org/10.1117/12.206585

Published: 1 July 1995

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