Two methods for fast coherence tomography and topometry

Abstract

Coherence tomo- and topography have great potential in the building of optical measuring tools for a lot of different technical and biological applications. One major limiting property of scanning coherence methods is their data acquisition time. In this paper we describe two methods for increasing the measuring speed; one for an analogue and one for a digital preprocessing sensor. In particular, we present a novel scanning device for an analogue 1-D sensor which enables measurements with a very fast vertical scanning rate to be made. A periodical change of the optical path difference of up to 3 mm and frequencies of 1200 Hz and more can be achieved by using a resonant scanner. We describe an optical fibre setup using this novel scanner in combination with a homemade low cost light source which is most appropriate for optical fibre coherence application.