Abstract

The rotationally-shearing interferometer has been proposed as the instrument that may be used to record optical or infrared signal from an extra-solar planet.¹ Also, its capacity to detect only the rotationally asymmetric aberrations has made it ideal for the asphericity testing of a glass sphere. The intensity patterns of the rotationally-shearing interferometer have been investigated previously for the specific angles of 90² and 180 degrees^3,4. We present the simulated interferometric patterns for the tilt, astigmatism, coma, and their sum, as obtained in a rotationally-shearing interferometer for small and large shearing angles. The intensity patterns are calculated using the for a two-beam interference.

© 1998 Optical Society of America