Acta Optica Sinica, Volume. 39, Issue 6, 0628001(2019)
Field-Widening Technology of Mach-Zehnder Interferometer in Doppler Wind Lidar
Investigating the wind-speed profiles in the Martian atmosphere is significant for elucidating the Martian atmospheric environment. The Doppler wind-detection lidar based on the Mach-Zehnder interferometer is more suitable for Mars ground detection than the normal coherent/incoherent Doppler lidars. However, for detecting the frequency shift of the echo signal within the large field of view received by the Doppler lidar telescope, the Mach-Zehnder interferometer must be adapted by the field-widening technology. This study evaluates the effectiveness of two field-widening technologies—one based on a prism and the other based on the ‘cat’s-eye’ optical system—in a Mach-Zehnder interferometer. The prism-based technology proved more advantageous than the cat’s eye system. Next, a Mach-Zehnder interferometer with an optical path difference of 219 mm was designed and constructed. The designed Mach-Zehnder interferometer was injected with a quasi-parallel beam with an 11-mrad field of view, and its transmission spectrum was measured by scanning a mirror driven by a piezoelectric crystal. The maximum interference contrast of the interferometer was 0.87, sufficient for a Doppler lidar. The height dependence of the interference contrast was then analyzed in the earth’s atmospheric environment. Although the interference contrast of the Mach-Zehnder interferometer with a large optical-path difference decreased slightly with the increase of height in the low-altitude atmosphere (below 5 km), the atmospheric wind speed was still detectable with the interferometer.
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Guanglie Hong, Yanbo Zhou, Wei Yan, Wuhu Lei, Rong Shu. Field-Widening Technology of Mach-Zehnder Interferometer in Doppler Wind Lidar[J]. Acta Optica Sinica, 2019, 39(6): 0628001
Category: Remote Sensing and Sensors
Received: Dec. 12, 2018
Accepted: Feb. 19, 2019
Published Online: Jun. 17, 2019
The Author Email: Shu Rong (shurong@mail.sitp.ac.cn)