Fiber ring interferometer
Abstract
A ring interferometer rotation detector (gyroscope) using optical fiber waveguide is designed. The sensitivity of the device is enhanced via multiple traverses of counterrotating beams around an area, but restrictions on the optimum fiber length are imposed by the photon noise limit. A well-defined wavefront and efficient coupling of light into the fiber are required. Laser light divided by a beam splitter is focused on the terminations of single-mode fibers. After exiting, the light is returned through the fibers in the opposite direction and the beams are recombined at the beam splitter, with the image magnified and displayed. Displacement of one end of the fiber from the focal point of the converging lens produces growing fringes as an error signal. The system is sufficiently sensitive for navigation applications, is free from pulling and lock-in characterizing ring laser systems (and hence can detect very low angular velocities), but is inferior to the ring laser in ultimate theoretical sensitivities.
- Publication:
-
Applied Optics
- Pub Date:
- May 1976
- DOI:
- 10.1364/AO.15.001099
- Bibcode:
- 1976ApOpt..15.1099V
- Keywords:
-
- Fiber Optics;
- Interferometers;
- Laser Applications;
- Signal Detectors;
- Angular Velocity;
- Beam Splitters;
- Diffraction Patterns;
- Gyroscopes;
- Optical Coupling;
- Optical Fibers;
- Ring Lasers;
- Ring Structures;
- Velocity Measurement;
- Instrumentation and Photography;
- FIBER OPTICS;
- LASERS;
- INTERFEROMETERS