The importance of knowing the size and distribution of light within optical beams has given rise to identifying techniques and equipment that enable quantification of spatial characteristics to a repeatable and believable degree. The difficulty arises in confronting the nature of advancing technology in the design of optical systems and its impact on the equipment's need for sensitivity to various wavelengths, light levels, and beam diameters. What will be described is the development of an instrument that addresses the need for characterizing spatial properties of a wide range of optical beams at any point within an optical train. Reasoning on the sampling technique employed and the selection criteria used in designating appropriate components in order to achieve a high level of measurement accuracy will be discussed. In addition, the discussion will review the practical application of such equipment in a variety of optical system configurations.

Date Published: 15 August 1988
PDF: 5 pages
Proc. SPIE 0888, Laser Beam Radiometry, (15 August 1988); doi: 10.1117/12.944234

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 0888:
Laser Beam Radiometry
Aaron A. Sanders, Editor(s)