An optical position-measuring device for sensing a relative position of two objects, each object being connected to a grating. The optical position-measuring device is configured such that, at one of the gratings, an illumination beam emitted from a light source is split into two sub-beams which, in respective scanning beam paths following the splitting, experience different polarization-optical effects and recombine at one of the gratings. After the differently polarized sub-beams are recombined, a plurality of phase-shifted, displacement-dependent scanning signals are generatable from a resulting signal beam in a detection unit. No separate polarization-optical components are disposed in the scanning beam paths of the sub-beams between splitting and recombination. At least one of the gratings is configured as a polarization grating configured to produce the different polarization-optical effects and such that diffraction orders with different polarization states are produced at each point of incidence on the polarization grating.

A rotary optical position encoder includes a source of a linear-polarized light beam, a polarization-sensitive detector, and a rotating retarder disposed for rotation between the source and the detector. The retarder is configured and operative to produce a polarized exit beam whose polarization state rotates at a rate greater than a rotation rate of the retarder, thereby for increased resolution over a similar encoder using a rotating polarizer element. In an example, when polarized light is incident upon a rotating half-wave retarder, the transmitted beam's polarization axis rotates at twice the rate of retarder rotation, resulting in an electrical detector output that varies four times per revolution. Resolution is improved accordingly, as a given detected increment at the output is produced by only one-half the physical rotation increment required for a simple polarizer.

A method is provided for spatially modulating electromagnetic radiation at high frequency where the modulation is phase, polarization or direction of propagation comprises a substrate carrying an ordered array of optical elements in relative motion with respect to an incident beam of electromagnetic radiation to be modulated and measuring the relative motion. The array contains at least three optical elements and at least two different types of optical elements. At least some of the optical elements are formed from and integral to the substrate material. The optical elements may be fabricated on the substrate material by a subtractive process. The electromagnetic radiation to be modulated is incident on a region of the substrate termed the active region. As the substrate moves relative to the incident electromagnetic radiation, the active region also moves and the designation of individual optical elements changes also.

A five-degree-of-freedom heterodyne grating interferometry system comprises: a single-frequency laser for emitting single-frequency laser light, the single-frequency laser light can be split into a reference light beam and a measurement light beam; an interferometer lens set and a measurement grating for converting the reference light and the measurement light into a reference interference signal and a measurement interference signal; and multiple optical fiber bundles, respectively receiving the measurement interference signal and the reference interference signal, wherein each optical fiber bundle has multiple multi-mode optical fibers respectively receiving interference signals at different positions on the same plane. The measurement system is not over-sensitive to the environment, is small and light, and is easy to arrange. Six-degree-of-freedom ultra-precision measurement can be achieved by arranging multiple five-degree-of-freedom interferometry systems and using redundant information, thereby meeting the needs of a lithography machine workpiece table for six-degree-of-freedom position and orientation measurement.

The invention pertains to a contactless measurement method for detecting rotation of an object over an axis coinciding with an optical axis of a probe beam. The probe beam is comprised of two monochromatic wavelengths with circular polarizations of opposite chirality, having a frequency difference for providing a heterodyne probe beam. A neutral beam splitter is provided that directs a reflected beam via a polarizer filter towards a first photodetector and that directs a transmitted beam toward a quarter wave plate attached to a rotatable object. A mirror reflects the probe beam, via the same quarter wave plate, back into the neutral beam splitter, which directs the reflected beam via a polarizer filter toward a second photodetector. The rotation is derived from the relative phase difference between the first and second photodetector signals.

The present application discloses a fiber distributed acoustic sensing system, including a forward pump source, a wavelength division multiplexer, an active phase-shifted grating array, a backward pump source, and a data demodulation and processing device. The active phase-shifted grating array includes several active phase-shifted gratings engraved on a same fiber, each active phase-shifted grating having a same excitation light wavelength. The active phase-shifted grating array is configured to receive a forward pump pulse and a backward pump light pulse incident from the backward pump source, so that a forward excitation light and a backward excitation light are generated in each active phase-shifted grating, and two adjacent active phase-shifted gratings are enabled to generate excitation light self interference within a same pulse duration. The data demodulation and processing device is configured to perform interference detection on a fiber phase between two adjacent active phase-shifted gratings to detect an acoustic signal acted on the fiber. According to the system in the present application, the passive reflected light interference is replaced with active excitation light interference, thus the excitation light signal has great strength and high stability, and environmental adaptability is high.

An optical fiber changes a polarization state of a propagating light when at least one of a vibration and a displacement occurs. An optical transmitter inputs a first wavelength light to the optical fiber via a separator, and an optical transmitter inputs a second wavelength light to the optical fiber via a separator. The first and second wavelength lights propagated through the optical fiber in mutually opposite directions are respectively received by optical receivers (13 and 12) via the separators (18 and 17), and a fluctuation of a polarization is detected in polarization fluctuation detectors (16 and 15). A data processing device collects data indicating the fluctuation of the polarization detected by the polarization fluctuation detector and data indicating the fluctuation of the polarization detected by the polarization fluctuation detector.

An optical position-measuring device for sensing a relative position of two objects, each object being connected to a grating. The optical position-measuring device is configured such that, at one of the gratings, an illumination beam emitted from a light source is split into two sub-beams which, in respective scanning beam paths following the splitting, experience different polarization-optical effects and recombine at one of the gratings. After the differently polarized sub-beams are recombined, a plurality of phase-shifted, displacement-dependent scanning signals are generatable from a resulting signal beam in a detection unit. No separate polarization-optical components are disposed in the scanning beam paths of the sub-beams between splitting and recombination. At least one of the gratings is configured as a polarization grating configured to produce the different polarization-optical effects and such that diffraction orders with different polarization states are produced at each point of incidence on the polarization grating.

The disclosure relates to a lower display sensor. The lower display sensor includes: a light sensor, including a light irradiation portion that irradiates an induction light used for sensing an object located outside a display, and a light receiving portion that detects a reflected light reflected by the induction light from the object; a first sensor polarizing layer, disposed on an upper portion of the light sensor and having a polarizing axis inclined at a first angle; and a first sensor delay layer, disposed on an upper portion of the sensor polarizing layer and having a slow axis inclined at a first angle with respect to the polarizing axis.

Example position detection means and displacement detection devices are described. A relative position detection means optically detects a relative position of displacement of an object to be measured in a measuring direction, including a target mounted on the object to be measured and irradiated with light from a light source; a light receiver for detection of relative position for receiving light by changing polarization state of reflected light at the target with respect to the light; and a relative position information output unit for outputting relative position information based on displacement of the target in the measuring direction based on change of polarization state of the reflected light. The target includes a reflector mounted on the object to be measured and a birefringent member on the reflector and having a thickness changing from a tip to a base end along the measuring direction.