Principles of Fourier Transform Optical Measurements

Chapter 7

Time Domain Spectroscopy

Encode spectral information about a source in the form of a time dependent electrical signal called interferogram. The interferogram is the time dependent function of the intensity of the source.
Time domain signal: Intensity versus Time/Distance

The spectrum- the interferogram, when appropriately analyzed, yields the spectrum of the source.
Frequency Domain Signal: Signal versus Frequency.

The Michelson interferometer

Converts a high frequency signal to a measurable low frequency signal Signal/frequency modulation Interferogram is analyzed to obtain the spectrum

Components of a Michelson Interferometer

Two plane mirrors at right angle

Fixed mirror Movable mirror

Beam splitter at an angle of 45 to the mirrors: divides incoming light (ideally 50 % transmitted and 50 % reflected) Compensator: equalizes the optical path lengths in both arms

Simple Case of Idealized Monochromatic Radiation

Assume for simplicity that there is a monochromatic input to the interferometer adjusted so that the optical path lengths in both arms are identical. The two beams will be in phase when they return to the beam splitter and, as such, they will constructively interfere. Looking into the interferometer at the output, the field will appear bright. Move one mirror back 1/4 of a wavelength. The two beams will be 180 out of phase and they will destructively interfere, the field will appear dark. If the mirror is continuously moved, the field will oscillate from light to dark for each quarter-wavelength movement of the mirror. One cycle of the interferogram occurs when the mirror moves a distance equal to 1/2 .

Relationship between the Frequency of Interferogram and Optical Frequency

Let be the time required for the mirror to move 1/2 wavelength,

VM the constant mirror velocity, f

the frequency of the inteferogram, and the optical frequency.

= VM

(1)

f =

( is the period of the interferogram / time required to complete a cycle) if the mirror velocity is 1 cm/s, the frequency of the interferogram is,

2VM

2VM = 2VM c

(2)

f = 6.67 10 11

The equation for the interferogram

P ( ) = 1 P ( ) cos(2ft ) 2

It is a simple cosine wave, the amplitude of which depends on the intensity of the monochromatic source

:retardation: difference in path travelled by the two beams

P ( ) : radiant power of the output as a function of retardation

P( ) :

radiant power of the source as a function of optical frequency (source spectrum)

Modified interferogram equation

P( ) = B ( ) cos(2ft )
The modified equation accounts for unequal splitting of the source power and the frequency dependence of the detector response Substitute

by equation 2, then substitute VM by

/2
t

P( ) = B ( ) cos(2 )

The frequency of the oscillation depends on two factors: 1) the frequency of the incoming electromagnetic radiation 2) the velocity of the mirror Thus, using an interferometer a very high optical frequency can be uniquely encoded in the form of a low-frequency oscillation.

Simple Interferograms and Spectra

What is the nature of a broadband spectral input?

Each input can be treated independently and hence the output will be the summation of cosine functions. At zero path difference, all the waves are in phase As the mirror is moved away from zero position the waves rapidly sum out to a steady average value. The resulting ac signal/ the interferogram can be expressed mathematically as:
+

(1) P ( ) =

B( ) cos(2 )d

Fourier Transformation
The Fourier transform of the integral (1) is integral (2) Integrals (1) and (2) form a cosine Fourier transform pair. +

(1) P( ) =

B( ) cos(2 )d
FT

(2) B ( ) =

P( ) cos(2 )d

Effects of finite mirror movement and digitization

To reconstruct the exact spectrum of the source, the interferogram must be measured from - to +. However, the mirror movement is finite. Digitization of the interferogram requires use of finite-sized sampling interval. These two practical constraints limit the resolution and the frequency range. The width of the signal is inversely related to the maximum extent of the interferogram, hence the mirror movement.

Resolution

Resolution depends on the width of the interferogram (mirror travel distance) The minimum mirror travel distance required for two lines to be resolved is given by:

= 2 1 =

Advantages of FT Methods
Multiplex or Fellgets advantage Throughput advantage High accuracy and reproducibility of frequency measurements High resolution Computerization Controlled resolution function

Multiplex or Fellgets advantage

In scanning each resolution element is "seen" during a fraction of the total scanning time (T). If M is the number of resolution elements, then Number of resolution elements =(max min ) T
Signal Noise S N T M M T M

Fellgets advantage
With the interferometer, each resolution element is "seen" all the time (all optical frequencies are incident on the detector at once). The spectral information is said to be multiplexed.
Signal T Noise T S T N

Superior by a factor of

Throughput advantage
Throughput is the amount of light that one can get through the spectrometer. One of the factor that limits the throughput of a grating or prism instrument is the necessity for an entrance slit. The interferometer has a large circular entrance aperture, roughly the size of the mirrors and, as such, has greater throughput. The improvement is a factor of 100.