Abstract:
In many cases, the alignment of optics on an optical table is just as important as aligning optics in a good camera lens where the optics are rotationally symmetric. This symmetry aids precision alignment but is unavailable on a tabletop. Conversely, on a tabletop, the optics are unconstrained, so they may be aligned in all 5 or 6 degrees of freedom to achieve theoretically perfect alignment. The question is how to do this.
Bessel beams propagate through optical systems like a single ray whose position can be measured at any distance along the optical path. Using a Bessel beam and the reflection from a center of curvature of a spherical surface of an optic provides the required data to achieve alignment in translation and angle to the limits of the measuring apparatus, typically less than 1 µm and less than 1 arc second.
Research interests: I assume asking this will help you plan some lab visits for me. Let me know if I am wrong, but I am interested in seeing some experiments where lots of optics are spread out on an optical table so I can see the challenges researchers face when trying to align their optics. This visit is as much to inform me so I am in a better position to help with alignment as it is to talk about what I can presently do. I want to see examples of people having trouble with alignment or where better alignment would produce better experimental results. Then, I can see if there is a better method of alignment given the constraints the people in the lab face daily.