An optical configuration for measurement of in-plane displacement and
for contouring is reported. In this method an object point is viewed s
ymmetrically with respect to surface normal and combined coherently at
the image plane of the imaging system. Because the beams are combined
by small apertures at the image plane, decorrelation sets in rather s
lowly. Owing to low decorrelation, fringes have been obtained for larg
e in-plane deformations and large angular tilts. The method is simple
to implement, and its sensitivity can be varied over a wide range. The
configuration, therefore, extends the range of measurement. (C) 1996
Optical Society of America