Abstract

There are some well known interferometers used in optical testing, which are not clearly classified in the literature as wavefront or amplitude division devices. Examples of them are the Burch, Ronchi, Linnik-Smartt and line diffraction interferometers. Another possible aspect to consider for classification, is to know if the reference wavefront is self-contained in the test wavefront. Therefore, if we do these type of classification of the interferometers, within the two above mentioned aspects, some families of interferometers can be obtained, each family showing its particular advantages or disadvantages.

© 1988 Optical Society of America