FABRY-PEROT INTERFEROMETER

Roberto Bartali

ABSTRACT
Spectroscopy is a technique based on the separation of light. Chemical and Physical
phenomena can be studied by the analysis of the quantity of absorbed, emitted or reflected
photons of some particular wavelength. Normally this is done using filters with narrow or
broad band pass, depending on the information we are looking for. If the filter band pass is
narrow, more precise measurements can be done, because we have the capacity to isolate
photons, of a very specific wavelength, which are produced by some particular
phenomenon or circumstance. The selection of a particular wavelength, from the whole
incoming light, can be done using a technique developed by Fabry and Perot in late 1800.
This work is devoted to the description of such technique, called, precisely, Fabry-Perot
interferometer.

BACKGROUND
August Comte (1798-1857),
a French philosopher known as the
creator of the Positivism [Wikipedia
2006] stated that something that
people would never know is the
chemical composition of stars,
because they are so far that we
could never go there to get a sample
and bring it back on Earth for
analysis [U-Maryland]. Maybe we
will never travel to stars, but we do
not need to do that to know how stars works and their composition.
Spectroscopy is the technique of the analysis of light emitted, reflected or absorbed
by objects. A spectrum (discovered by Newton) is the decomposition of light into each
constituent wavelengths, for example, in the case of our Sun, it is the rainbow (visible
spectrum) plus all other invisible wavelengths. A spectrum is obtained by passing the light
through a prism (figure 1-a) or a
diffraction grating (figure 1-b).
Fraunhofer in 1814
(observing Sun spectra with a
magnification lens) discovered a
series of dark lines (figure 2) in the
solar spectra, but nobody know
what they are until 1859, when
Kirchhoff and Bunsen figured out
that chemical elements produces a
unique pattern of spectral lines, like
their own fingerprint. This way we
can know the exact chemical
composition of materials and of
course stars, just spreading the light we receive from them into a spectrum.
Light is an electromagnetic radiation (an electric and a magnetic field perpendicular
one to each other, moving, in the vacuum, at the speed of light, or at different speed
depending on the medium) and behave as a particle and as a wave (but not at the same
time). Photons (the particles of light) are generated when an energized electron return to its
normal no energized state (falls down to it original energy band in the atom). Due to its
duality, it shares all the properties of a wave and a particle and it carries energy because it
moves. If we see light as a wave, we can represent it by the wavelength λ (the distance from
two successive crest), the quantity of crests that succeed in a second is the frequency (f).
The energy is then, the frequency multiplied by the Planck constant (h). We can observe
this energy in the Photoelectric effect, which is the way a light act as a particle. We have
seen the application of the photoelectric effect in CCD and Photomultiplier tubes.
We are interested, now, in the wave properties of light. Waves suffer from
interference which can be constructive or destructive [Olympus 2006, Wolfram 2006]. The
former is when two or more waves are in phase (both crest are of the same sign, positive or

negative), the maximum effect is when both crest pass at the same time from the same
place, so they are added together (figure 3-a). The latter is when the waves are out of phase
(one is positive and the other is negative), the maximum effect is when the crest of one
wave coincide, in the same place at the same time with the trough of the other, in this case
the amplitude of the resulting wave is zero (figure 3-b). Waves of different wavelength and
phase create a complicated pattern when interact (figure 3-c).
Another important concept we need, for the understanding of this discussion about
interferometers, is that a star emit light as a blackbody object (which is an idealized object
that absorb all radiation falling on it and do not reflect any. A blackbody does not emit any
electromagnetic radiation, all the radiation emitted is only thermal radiation) and obey
Wien and Stephan-Boltzman laws for blackbody radiation. [ESA 2005] .
The light (electromagnetic radiation) we receive from a star could be seen directly,
through a cloud of gas and dust or scattered by that cloud (figure 4) [U-Maryland].
• If the light is received directly from the star, we perceive a continuous spectrum,
when it pass through a prism (figure 4-a). A continuum spectrum shows all the
wavelength emitted by the object.
• If the light pass through a gas cloud, some wavelengths are absorbed (depending on
the atoms that constitute the gas). The spectrum is called an absorption spectrum
and show (figure 4-b) dark lines corresponding to the wavelengths absorbed (not
transmitted by the gas cloud).
 • If the gas cloud is not aligned with our line of sight, we perceive the light that it
scatter. The scattering effect depends on the gas composition. The resulting
spectrum show a series of bright lines corresponding to the elements which interact
with the gas and emit photons (figure 4-c).

• If we superimpose the absorption and the emission spectrum, we get the continuum
spectrum again, because photons of wavelengths absorbed by the gas, energize its
atoms and photons at those precise wavelengths are now emitted depending of
course of the characteristics of each atom.
After this brief explanation of key concepts, we will enter in the field of interferometry,
which is the study of wave interference, and in its application in spectroscopy and imaging.

INTERFEROMETER BASICS
Interferometry is a
technique that combine
various beams of light to
achieve a greater
resolution. It is used to
made very precise spatial
measurements like
diameter of stars. Due to
the complexity of the
technique, it is applied
from visible to radio
wavelengths of the
electromagnetic spectrum
(optical and radio
interferometry). Some
examples of radio
interferometers are the Very Large Array [VLA] and the Australia Radio Telescope
[ATNF] (figure 5-a). Some examples of optical interferometers are the European Southern
Observatory Very Large Telescope [VLT] (figure 5-b) and the Keck twin telescopes
[Keck].
 It consists of capturing waves, coming from a single object, by two or more
different and separated instruments. The separation between instruments is called the
baseline. The resolution of the image is the same that would be obtained by a single
instrument which diameter is equal to the baseline; but the light collecting power is,
obviously, much less because the diameter of each instrument is much less than the
baseline, even more, it is lesser than the one of a single instrument with a collecting surface
approximately equal to the sum of the collecting areas of each instruments conforming the
interferometer.
Waves reach each instrument at slight different time, so to obtain useful information
from an interferometer we need to record each one with a very precise timing, for very long
baseline interferometry in the radio spectrum, an atomic clock is used to synchronize every
signal. Optical interferometry is much more complex, due to the shorter wavelengths
involved, light path from each telescope must be compensated (with a maximum difference
of a fraction of a wavelength) before to be combined.
An interferometer is not an instrument intended to capture images in a direct form,
like a telescope equipped with a CCD, instead of an image, it show a complex interference
pattern (captured by a conventional CCD) that must be processed to obtain the image of the
object of interest.
Many kinds of interferometers were developed, each one for a different application,
in this work we are interested only in one of them, developed by Fabry and Perot in late
1800 [].

FABRY-PEROT APPARATUS
The Fabry-Perot apparatus (figure 6) [Dickmann 2003, FP1, FP2, FP3, FP4, FP5]
consist of two semitransparent mirrors (plane or curved) placed at some distance (t), which
is in the order of the wavelength to be observed. The medium between both mirrors has a
refractive index of n. Light (λ) from the object under study must enter at certain angle θ
with respect to the optical
axis, through the mirror on
the left side. Light inside the
mirrors suffer from a series
of constructive and
destructive interferences
because it is reflected many
times from one mirror to the
other because they are
semitransparent. If the
mirror separation (t) is an
entire multiple of the
wavelength, of the incoming
light, a constructive interference reinforce that light and it is the one that can pass through
the second mirror (the one on the right). Instead, if the distance (t) is half a wavelength of
the incoming light, destructive interference occurs and no light of that wavelength pass
through the second mirror. Conceptually simple to fabricate, but very difficult to do in
practice because of the extremely small dimension of the distance between mirrors, the
flatness or surface accuracy of them must be very high, the refractive index of the inter-
mirror medium must be very uniform as the reflectivity of both mirrors. This two mirror
configuration is also called an optical cavity because is an optical resonator. Another name,
coined by Fabry and Perot is Etalon, word that means something like the “measuring
gauge” of the light.
An output wavelength can be obtained if the
conditions or the status of (t, θ and n) met the Fabry-
Perot Equation depicted in the blue box of figure 6. It
is obvious that this is a tunable optical filter. Tuning
can be performed by varying any of the two main
parameters: distance between mirrors (t) and the
angle of the incident light. If the angle of incidence is
zero i.e., perpendicular to the mirror, no interferences
are produced inside the mirrors and the exiting light
is the same as the incident one [FP1, TecOptics
2006]. Tuning the filter moving one of the mirrors
respect to the other (incrementing or decrementing
the distance t), it is possible to calculate an unknown wavelength with the relation: λ=2t/n;
where lambda is the unknown wavelength, t is the distance between mirrors and n is the
fringe order. The latter is the number of fringes counted outward from the centre of the
image (figure 9), to do this a photodiode or a
photomultiplier tube are best suited (it is more or
less the same as counting white and black lines in
a barcode).
The resolution of a Fabry-Perot Etalon is
known as the Finesse and it is proportional to the
reflectivity of the mirrors (figure 7) [Dickmann,
FP4]. Higher the reflectivity, smaller the pass-
band of the output wavelength. This imply that if
we want to separate (fine tuning) a narrow band
from a complex or a wider set of wavelengths the
reflectivity of the mirrors can be as high as
possible (figure 8). In that figure we can see the
effect of the reflectivity, if the curve is steeper,
the intensity of the wavelength transmitted by the
filter is higher. This imply that the resolution is better than for a low reflectivity mirror.
Recalling the interference theory, if the light is reflected more times, the constructive
interference reinforce that wave more times too. At the same time, the undesired
wavelength suffers from destructive interference more times, so the intensity of the output
wave is very low or null. The distance from fringes (peaks in figure
8) is d=c/(2t), where c is the speed of light and t is the separation
between mirrors.
The output of the Fabry-Perot filter is focused by a lens and
directed to a conventional optical sensor like a CCD or a
photomultiplier tube. The resulting image is a series of concentric
circles [Hyperphysics] with the higher order one toward the centre
(figure 9).
The advantage of a Fabry-Perot interferometer is its extremely high
resolution at the expense of a very complex manufacturing process.
Some of the critical figures that can degrade its performance if not well calculated and
manufactured are: parallelism between mirrors, flatness of the mirrors, uniformity of the
refractive index of the medium between mirrors, differences in the reflectivity of one mirror
respect to the other, impurities in the mirror material and movements of the mirrors.

APPLICATIONS
Astronomy is just one of the multiple applications of this kind of interferometer.
Communication technologies, laser (modern lasers could be not manufactured without
Fabry-Perot technology) and medicine uses it extensively. The main application of a Fabry-
Perot interferometer in Astronomy is spectroscopy. Thank to its high resolution, it is
possible to isolate a specific wavelength and measuring its intensity, to know precisely the
quantity of some specific element present or absorbed. It is a part of a spectrometer, the
light from a slit is diffracted by a diffraction grating and is directed to the etalon. The light
from the etalon is then focused on a CCD.

A precise measurement of the position of the lines in the spectrum of an object (like
a galaxy) permit the calculation of the velocity of that object due to the Doppler effect. In
this field, a Fabry-Perot interferometer is more accurate than an ordinary spectroscope. A
precise three dimensional velocity curve profile (figure 11,12) can be made with Fabry-
Perot interferometry giving the possibility to understand the morphology of galaxies and
their star forming region developments specially when
there are imaged looking for HII regions using the
Halpha emission line (figure 10). Figure 13 is the
galaxy NGC1672 in Halpha light just for comparison, to
better understand the interferometric images.
Solar research can take also advantage to the
high resolution of these interferometers because very
narrow lines can be measured.
REFERENCES
General
Wikipedia 2006-1, Auguste Comte: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auguste_Comte

ESA 2005, Stellar radiation and stellar types:

http://sci.esa.int/science-e/www/object/index.cfm?fobjectid=35774&fbodylongid=1696

VLT: http://www.eso.org/paranal/

Keck: http://www.keckobservatory.org/

VLA: http://www.vla.nrao.edu/

ATNF: http://www.atnf.csiro.au/

Dickmann 2003, Fabry-Perot Resonator, Experiment03, 2003.

FP1: http://www.ee.byu.edu/photonics/Fabry_Perot.phtml

FP2: http://www.micronoptics.com/telecom_ffp.htm

FP3:http://www.cfht.hawaii.edu/Instruments/Spectroscopy/Fabry-
Perot/mosaicfp5.html#finessecalc

FP4: http://www.chem.uic.edu/tak/chem524/Spring2001/notes6/figureN_1.gif

FP5:
http://www.phy.davidson.edu/StuHome/cabell_f/diffractionfinal/pages/Fabry.htm#Theory

TecOptics 2006: http://www.tecoptics.com/etalons/index.htm

Wikipedia 2006-2: Fabry-Perot Interferometer: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fabry-Perot

U-Maryland, The tools of Astronomy:

http://www.umuc.edu/virtualteaching/module1/umuc_ex/content/mod2.html#1.1

Olympus 2006, Microscopy Resource Center:

http://www.olympusmicro.com/primer/lightandcolor/java.html

Wolfram 2006, Interferences: http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/physics/Interference.html

Hyperphysics, Fabry-Perot Interferometer:

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/Hbase/phyopt/fabry.html

Applications
Puerari I., Valdez-Gutierrez M, Rosado M., A Fabry-Perot study of Scd I galaxy NGC5457,
2002, astro-ph/0202013 v1.
Debattista V., Williams T.B., Fabry-Perot absorption line spectroscopy of NGC7079:
kinematics and bar pattern speed, 2004, Astrphysical Journal 605:714-724.

Soh M., et al, Short wavelength infrared tuneable filters on HgCdTe photoconductors,
2005, Optics Express 9683, vol 13 num 24.

The Electronic Universe Project, University of Oregon

Allen Gary G., CIV vacuum ultraviolet Fabry-Perot interferometer for solar research, 2006:
http://solar.physics.montana.edu/

IMAGE CREDITS
Figure 1-a
Prism: adapted from
http://www.cglapocatiere.qc.ca/techno/banque%20de%20photos/prism.jpg
Figure 1-b
Diffraction grating: adapted from
http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov/images/grating_spec-br.jpg
Figure 2
Solar spectrum:
http://sci.esa.int/science-e/www/object/index.cfm?fobjectid=35774&fbodylongid=1699
Figure 3-a
Constructive interference:
http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/physics/ConstructiveInterference.html
Figure 3-b
Destructive interference:
http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/physics/DestructiveInterference.html
Figure 3-c
Interference pattern diagram:
Interference pattern picture:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:2006-01-14_Surface_waves.jpg
Figure 4-a,4-b,4-c
Kind of spectrum (adapted from):
http://hal.physast.uga.edu/~rls/1020/ch6/
Figure 5-a
ATNF: http://www.narrabri.atnf.csiro.au/
Figure 5-b
VLT: http://www.eso.cl/paranal.php
Figure 6
FP diagram:
http://www.cfht.hawaii.edu/Instruments/Spectroscopy/Fabry-
Perot/mosaicfp5.html#finessecalc
Figure 7
Finesse: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a3/Etalon-finesse-vs-reflectivity-2.png
Figure 8
Finesse: Dickmann 2003, Fabry-Perot Resonator, Experiment03, 2003.
Figure 9
Fringes: http://www.mellesgriot.com/glossary/wordlist/glossarydetails.asp?wID=279
Figure 10
NGC1672 HII regions: http://zebu.uoregon.edu/fp2.html
Figure 11
Curve map of NGC1672: http://zebu.uoregon.edu/fp2.html
Figure 12
Velocity profile of NGC1406: http://zebu.uoregon.edu/fp2.html
Figure 13
NGC1672: http://zebu.uoregon.edu/fp2.html