The development of full field interferometric methods for fluid velocimetry

The development of fill field interferometry as a velocimetry technique in experimental fluid mechanics from its inception in 1977 to the present is d iscussed. In 1977, holographic interferometry (HI) was applied for the firs t time to measure the velocity field in a liquid Row. It was not until 1998 that the first application to a gaseous Row was reported. The only kind of speckle interferometry that has: been applied to measure velocity fields s o far is digital speckle pattern interferometry (DSPI). It was in 1999 that DSPI was demonstrated both in a liquid and a gaseous flow. (C) 2001 Elsevi er Science Ltd. All rights reserved.