Portable Fiber Optic Interferometer

Alameda Applied Sciences Corporation (AASC) proposes to develop a new type of interferometer that is compact and portable and can be used to make in-situ measurements of gases and plasmas. This interferometer uses polarization maintaining optical fibers and diode lasers to duplicate the capabilities of existing Mach-Zender interferometers that use dicrete optical elements such as mirrors, lenses and prisms, but in a more compact, rugged and flexible assembly. Our basic design to measure the density in supersonic flows, consists of an assembly that measures 19" x 22" x 8", including the laser, probe and reference beams, feedback network to balance the two interferometer legs and detector electronics. Such a package is portable and readily adapted for use in-situ in various situations where neutral gases and plasmas are present. Once this Fiber optic Interferometer has been validated on a test supersonic nozzle, it could find broader use as a sensitive, non-invasive density diagnostic in chemical reactors, jet exhausts, pulsed ion beam diodes and accelerators. The instrument will be validated in Phase I, followed by commercial insertion at the end of Phase II.