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UNIVERSITY OF BUCHAREST
FACULTY OF PHYSICS Guest
2024-11-23 18:20 |
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Conference: Bucharest University Faculty of Physics 2009 Meeting
Section: Optics, Spectroscopy, Plasma and Lasers
Title:
Illustration of the coherence of non-stationary optical fields through a two beam interference experiment
Authors:
Vladimir Manea
Affiliation:
Faculty of Physics, University of Bucharest, P.O.Box MG-11, 0771253 Bucharest – Măgurele, Romania
E-mail
vladimir.manea@yahoo.com
Keywords:
optical coherence, non-stationary optical fields, interference
Abstract:
The statistical analysis of the coherence properties of non-stationary optical fields is a subject of increased interest in the last years and still represents an incompletely solved problem from a theoretical point of view. The most recent approaches to the field employ mostly spectral methods of analysis, which become complicated even for relatively simple optical field models and depart from the description “in terms of observable quantities”, proposed by Wolf, the creator of the first consistent theory of optical coherence, for stationary, ergodic optical fields. What we will present is a method of describing the non-stationary interference of partially coherent optical beams by using only observable quantities, expressed entirely as temporal averages of the instantaneous signals, which can be much easier to compute in concrete cases than the ensemble averages. We will show that this method of description allows, even through a simple experimental method, to obtain a quantitative measure of the degree of optical coherence. In order to do so, we will simulate the results of an interference experiment, carried out with non-stationary light and recorded by means of the revolving disk method. We will take into consideration in our analysis all the aspects of the detection process, including the sensitivity of the photographic film upon which the intensity of the optical field is recorded. Graphical representations of the simulated experimental results will be presented for all relevant cases.
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