Imaging systems based on optical interferometry are widely used because they are non-invasive, provide high resolution, and have a long working distance. However, they are often slow limiting industrial applications.
Associate Prof. Tatsutoshi Shioda and his team have overcome the speed challenge by incorporating a supercontinuum laser and a spatial phase modulator (SPM) as a critical component of the reference part of the interferometers used for tomography and profilometry. Hereby, the line-shape interference fringes are generated directly on a CCD creating a single-shot system that can run at very high speed.
![](https://www.nktphotonics.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/tomography-setup1.jpg)
Additionally, by rotating the SPM to switch the diffraction light for the interferometer, the magnification of the tomogram image can be changed while keeping the same resolution – i.e. optical zoom. A World’s first for this kind of system.
![](https://www.nktphotonics.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/tomography-associate-prof.-tatsutoshi-shioda-150x150-1.jpeg)
“NKT Photonics’ Supercontinuum light is really the powerful source for the broadband interferometry based tomography because of high optical power, super-wide bandwidth, and flexible optical filter. We are using both SuperK EXTREME and COMPACT (for more than 2 years without any troubles) for high-speed, high-resolution, and non-destructive profilometry and tomography, which is very important for an in-line product inspection processes in the automobile industry.”
Associate Prof. Tatsutoshi Shioda, Advanced Photonics & Sensing Laboratory, Saitama University
Publications
- Tuan Quoc Banh, Takaya Kosakai, Ryoma Onita, Tatsutoshi Shioda, “Interference fringe order distinction for single-shot tomography based on two wavelengths comb interferometry”, in Optics and photonics of Japan 2014, paper 7aD5.
- Tuan Quoc Banh and Tatsutoshi Shioda, “Control the optical magnification of a zooming tomography and profilometry with a spatial phase modulator installed interferometer,” in Advanced Photonics 2015, OSA Technical Digest (online) (Optical Society of America, 2015), paper SeT4C.5.