Birefringent Fourier transform imaging spectrometer with a rotating retroreflector

Abstract

A birefringent Fourier transform imaging spectrometer with a new lateral shearing interferometer is presented. The interferometer includes a Wollaston prism and a retroreflector. It splits an incident light beam into two shearing parallel parts to obtain interference fringe patterns of an imaging target, which is well established as an aid in reducing problems associated with optical alignment and manufacturing precision. Continuously rotating the retroreflector enables the spectrometer to acquire two-dimensional spectral images without spatial scanning. This technology, with a high work efficiency and low complexity, is inherently compact and robust. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated by the experimental results.