MULTIPLE-WAVELENGTH PHASE SHIFTING INTERFEROMETRY (OPTICAL-TESTING, ASPHERIC SURFACE).

The problems of combining ideas of phase shifting interferometry (PSI) and synthetic-wavelength techniques to extend the phase measurement range of conventional single-wavelength PSI are investigated. This combination of PSI and synthetic-wavelengths gives multiple-wavelength phase-shifting interferometry the advantages of: (1) larger phase measurement range and (2) higher accuracy of phase measurement. Advantages, error sources, and limitations of single-wavelength PSI are discussed. Some practical methods to calibrate the piezoelectric transducer (PZT), used to phase shift the reference beam, are presented with experimental results. Two methods of two-wavelength PSI are used to solve the 2π ambiguity problem of single-wavelength PSI. For the first method, two sets of phase data (with 2π ambiguities) for shorter wavelengths are calculated and stored in the computer which calculates the new phase data for the equivalent-wavelength λ(eq). The "error magnification effect," which reduces the measurement precision of the first method, is then investigated. The second, more accurate method, uses the results of the first method as a reference to correct the 2π ambiguities in the single-wavelength phase data. Experimental results are included to confirm theoretical predictions. The enhancement of two-wavelength PSI is investigated, and requires the phase data of a third wavelength. Experiments are performed to verify the capability of multiple-wavelength PSI. For the wavefront being measured, the difference of the optical-path-difference (OPD) between adjacent pixels is as large as 3.3 waves. After temporal averaging of five sets of data, the repeatability of the measurement is better than 2.5 nm (0.0025%) rms (λ = 632.8 nm). This work concludes with recommendations for future work that should make the MWLPSI a more practical technique for the testing of steep aspheric surfaces