Three Axis Interferometer for Distance and Tip-Tilt Measurement

Optical Physics Company is proposing a three axis interferometer instrument which measures the one dimensional linear translation and the two-dimensional angular deflection in pitch and yaw of a 7 mm mirror 18-23 cm away. The design is simple and compact, fitting within a 5x5x7.5 cm volume. An initial lab demonstration has already been completed showing performance parameters better than NIST requirements. The linear displacement precision was shown to 0.0089 nm (versus the 0.1 nm requirement) covering a working range from 18 cm to 23 cm. The demonstrated angular precision is 0.071 arc-seconds (versus the 0.1 arc-second requirement) with a range of +/- 50 arc-seconds. The Phase I work will build and test a prototype interferometer which will confirm the design and prepare for fabrication of a deliverable unit in Phase II.