High-precision lateral distortion measurement and correction in coherence scanning interferometry using an arbitrary surface

Lateral optical distortion is present in most optical imaging systems. In coherence scanning interferometry, distortion may cause field-dependent systematic errors in the measurement of surface topography. These errors become critical when high-precision surfaces, e.g. precision optics, are measured...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Ekberg, Peter, Su, Rong, Leach, Richard K.
Format: Article
Published: Optical Society of America 2017
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43725/
_version_ 1848796752140828672
author Ekberg, Peter
Su, Rong
Leach, Richard K.
author_facet Ekberg, Peter
Su, Rong
Leach, Richard K.
author_sort Ekberg, Peter
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description Lateral optical distortion is present in most optical imaging systems. In coherence scanning interferometry, distortion may cause field-dependent systematic errors in the measurement of surface topography. These errors become critical when high-precision surfaces, e.g. precision optics, are measured. Current calibration and correction methods for distortion require some form of calibration artefact that has a smooth local surface and a grid of high-precision manufactured features. Moreover, to ensure high accuracy and precision of the absolute and relative locations of the features of these artefacts, requires their positions to be determined using a traceable measuring instrument, e.g. a metrological atomic force microscope. Thus, the manufacturing and calibration processes for calibration artefacts are often expensive and complex. In this paper, we demonstrate for the first time the calibration and correction of optical distortion in a coherence scanning interferometer system by using an arbitrary surface that contains some deviations from flat and has some features (possibly just contamination), such that feature detection is possible. By using image processing and a self-calibration technique, a precision of a few nanometres is achieved for the distortion correction. An inexpensive metal surface, e.g. the surface of a coin, or a scratched and defected mirror, which can be easily found in a laboratory or workshop, may be used. The cost of the distortion correction with nanometre level precision is reduced to almost zero if the absolute scale is not required. Although an absolute scale is still needed to make the calibration traceable, the problem of obtaining the traceability is simplified as only a traceable measure of the distance between two arbitrary points is needed. Thus, the total cost of transferring the traceability may also be reduced significantly using the proposed method.
first_indexed 2025-11-14T19:52:58Z
format Article
id nottingham-43725
institution University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T19:52:58Z
publishDate 2017
publisher Optical Society of America
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling nottingham-437252020-05-04T18:56:38Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43725/ High-precision lateral distortion measurement and correction in coherence scanning interferometry using an arbitrary surface Ekberg, Peter Su, Rong Leach, Richard K. Lateral optical distortion is present in most optical imaging systems. In coherence scanning interferometry, distortion may cause field-dependent systematic errors in the measurement of surface topography. These errors become critical when high-precision surfaces, e.g. precision optics, are measured. Current calibration and correction methods for distortion require some form of calibration artefact that has a smooth local surface and a grid of high-precision manufactured features. Moreover, to ensure high accuracy and precision of the absolute and relative locations of the features of these artefacts, requires their positions to be determined using a traceable measuring instrument, e.g. a metrological atomic force microscope. Thus, the manufacturing and calibration processes for calibration artefacts are often expensive and complex. In this paper, we demonstrate for the first time the calibration and correction of optical distortion in a coherence scanning interferometer system by using an arbitrary surface that contains some deviations from flat and has some features (possibly just contamination), such that feature detection is possible. By using image processing and a self-calibration technique, a precision of a few nanometres is achieved for the distortion correction. An inexpensive metal surface, e.g. the surface of a coin, or a scratched and defected mirror, which can be easily found in a laboratory or workshop, may be used. The cost of the distortion correction with nanometre level precision is reduced to almost zero if the absolute scale is not required. Although an absolute scale is still needed to make the calibration traceable, the problem of obtaining the traceability is simplified as only a traceable measure of the distance between two arbitrary points is needed. Thus, the total cost of transferring the traceability may also be reduced significantly using the proposed method. Optical Society of America 2017-07-25 Article PeerReviewed Ekberg, Peter, Su, Rong and Leach, Richard K. (2017) High-precision lateral distortion measurement and correction in coherence scanning interferometry using an arbitrary surface. Optics Express, 25 (16). pp. 18703-18712. ISSN 1094-4087 https://www.osapublishing.org/oe/abstract.cfm?uri=oe-25-16-18703 doi:10.1364/OE.25.018703 doi:10.1364/OE.25.018703
spellingShingle Ekberg, Peter
Su, Rong
Leach, Richard K.
High-precision lateral distortion measurement and correction in coherence scanning interferometry using an arbitrary surface
title High-precision lateral distortion measurement and correction in coherence scanning interferometry using an arbitrary surface
title_full High-precision lateral distortion measurement and correction in coherence scanning interferometry using an arbitrary surface
title_fullStr High-precision lateral distortion measurement and correction in coherence scanning interferometry using an arbitrary surface
title_full_unstemmed High-precision lateral distortion measurement and correction in coherence scanning interferometry using an arbitrary surface
title_short High-precision lateral distortion measurement and correction in coherence scanning interferometry using an arbitrary surface
title_sort high-precision lateral distortion measurement and correction in coherence scanning interferometry using an arbitrary surface
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43725/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43725/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43725/