Phase-conjugate mirrors on the basis of photorefractive crystals offer inte
resting possibilities of application for optical measurement systems. In th
is paper we report on the application of phase-conjugate mirrors (PCMs) for
optical measurement techniques. We show different schemes for realizing PC
Ms and discuss characteristics such as reflectivity, fidelity, and time beh
avior.
We demonstrate that two-beam interferometers with PCMs and with a suitable
phase-shifting unit in the reference arm have general advantages compared w
ith conventional systems. It is shown that self-pumped PCMs (SPPCMs) could
also be successfully used for novelty filtering systems comparing a present
state of a signal phase with a reference phase. It is found that SPPCMs ca
n improve both the axial and the lateral resolution of a confocal microscop
e. A 30% better resolution of the PCM system is established.