Coherence length
Encyclopedia
In physics
, coherence length is the propagation
distance from a coherent
source to a point where an electromagnetic wave (or wave packet
, wave function, etc.) maintains a specified degree of coherence. The significance is that interference will be strong within a coherence length of the source, but not beyond it. This concept is also commonly used in telecommunication
engineering.
In long-distance transmission
systems, the coherence length may be reduced by propagation factors such as dispersion
, scattering
, and diffraction
.
In radio-band systems, the coherence length is approximated by
where c is the speed of light in a vacuum, n is the refractive index
of the medium
, and
is the bandwidth of the source.
In optical communications
, the coherence length
is given by
where
is the central wavelength
of the source,
is the refractive index
of the medium
, and
is the spectral width
of the source.
Coherence length is usually applied to the optical regime.
The expression above is a frequently used approximation. Due to ambiguities in the definition of spectral width of a source, however, the following definition of coherence length has been suggested:
The coherence length can be measured using a Michelson interferometer
and is the optical path length
difference of a self-interfering laser beam which corresponds to a
fringe visibility, where the fringe visibility is defined as
where
is the fringe intensity.
Multimode helium-neon laser
s have a typical coherence length of 20 cm, while the coherence length of singlemode ones can exceed 100 m. Semiconductor lasers reach some 100 m. Singlemode fiber laser
s with linewidths of a few kHz can have coherence lengths exceeding 100 km. Similar coherence lengths can be reached with optical frequency comb
s due to the narrow linewidth of each tooth. Non-zero visibility is present only for short intervals of pulses repeated after cavity length distances up to this long coherence length.
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
, coherence length is the propagation
Wave propagation
Wave propagation is any of the ways in which waves travel.With respect to the direction of the oscillation relative to the propagation direction, we can distinguish between longitudinal wave and transverse waves....
distance from a coherent
Coherence (physics)
In physics, coherence is a property of waves that enables stationary interference. More generally, coherence describes all properties of the correlation between physical quantities of a wave....
source to a point where an electromagnetic wave (or wave packet
Wave packet
In physics, a wave packet is a short "burst" or "envelope" of wave action that travels as a unit. A wave packet can be analyzed into, or can be synthesized from, an infinite set of component sinusoidal waves of different wavenumbers, with phases and amplitudes such that they interfere...
, wave function, etc.) maintains a specified degree of coherence. The significance is that interference will be strong within a coherence length of the source, but not beyond it. This concept is also commonly used in telecommunication
Telecommunication
Telecommunication is the transmission of information over significant distances to communicate. In earlier times, telecommunications involved the use of visual signals, such as beacons, smoke signals, semaphore telegraphs, signal flags, and optical heliographs, or audio messages via coded...
engineering.
In long-distance transmission
Transmission (telecommunications)
Transmission, in telecommunications, is the process of sending, propagating and receiving an analogue or digital information signal over a physical point-to-point or point-to-multipoint transmission medium, either wired, optical fiber or wireless...
systems, the coherence length may be reduced by propagation factors such as dispersion
Dispersion (optics)
In optics, dispersion is the phenomenon in which the phase velocity of a wave depends on its frequency, or alternatively when the group velocity depends on the frequency.Media having such a property are termed dispersive media...
, scattering
Scattering
Scattering is a general physical process where some forms of radiation, such as light, sound, or moving particles, are forced to deviate from a straight trajectory by one or more localized non-uniformities in the medium through which they pass. In conventional use, this also includes deviation of...
, and diffraction
Diffraction
Diffraction refers to various phenomena which occur when a wave encounters an obstacle. Italian scientist Francesco Maria Grimaldi coined the word "diffraction" and was the first to record accurate observations of the phenomenon in 1665...
.
In radio-band systems, the coherence length is approximated by
where c is the speed of light in a vacuum, n is the refractive index
Refractive index
In optics the refractive index or index of refraction of a substance or medium is a measure of the speed of light in that medium. It is expressed as a ratio of the speed of light in vacuum relative to that in the considered medium....
of the medium
Medium (optics)
An optical medium is material through which electromagnetic waves propagate. It is a form of transmission medium. The permittivity and permeability of the medium define how electromagnetic waves propagate in it...
, and
is the bandwidth of the source.In optical communications
Information transfer
In telecommunications, information transfer is the process of moving messages containing user information from a source to a sink.Note: The information transfer rate may or may not be equal to the transmission modulation rate.-See also:...
, the coherence length
is given bywhere
is the central wavelengthWavelength
In physics, the wavelength of a sinusoidal wave is the spatial period of the wave—the distance over which the wave's shape repeats.It is usually determined by considering the distance between consecutive corresponding points of the same phase, such as crests, troughs, or zero crossings, and is a...
of the source,
is the refractive indexRefractive index
In optics the refractive index or index of refraction of a substance or medium is a measure of the speed of light in that medium. It is expressed as a ratio of the speed of light in vacuum relative to that in the considered medium....
of the medium
Medium (optics)
An optical medium is material through which electromagnetic waves propagate. It is a form of transmission medium. The permittivity and permeability of the medium define how electromagnetic waves propagate in it...
, and
is the spectral widthSpectral width
In telecommunications, spectral width is the wavelength interval over which the magnitude of all spectral components is equal to or greater than a specified fraction of the magnitude of the component having the maximum value....
of the source.
Coherence length is usually applied to the optical regime.
The expression above is a frequently used approximation. Due to ambiguities in the definition of spectral width of a source, however, the following definition of coherence length has been suggested:
The coherence length can be measured using a Michelson interferometer
Michelson interferometer
The Michelson interferometer is the most common configuration for optical interferometry and was invented by Albert Abraham Michelson. An interference pattern is produced by splitting a beam of light into two paths, bouncing the beams back and recombining them...
and is the optical path length
Optical path length
In optics, optical path length or optical distance is the product of the geometric length of the path light follows through the system, and the index of refraction of the medium through which it propagates. A difference in optical path length between two paths is often called the optical path...
difference of a self-interfering laser beam which corresponds to a
fringe visibility, where the fringe visibility is defined aswhere
is the fringe intensity.Multimode helium-neon laser
Helium-neon laser
A helium–neon laser or HeNe laser, is a type of gas laser whose gain medium consists of a mixture of helium and neon inside of a small bore capillary tube, usually excited by a DC electrical discharge.- History of HeNe laser development:...
s have a typical coherence length of 20 cm, while the coherence length of singlemode ones can exceed 100 m. Semiconductor lasers reach some 100 m. Singlemode fiber laser
Fiber laser
A fiber laser or fibre laser is a laser in which the active gain medium is an optical fiber doped with rare-earth elements such as erbium, ytterbium, neodymium, dysprosium, praseodymium, and thulium. They are related to doped fiber amplifiers, which provide light amplification without lasing...
s with linewidths of a few kHz can have coherence lengths exceeding 100 km. Similar coherence lengths can be reached with optical frequency comb
Frequency comb
A frequency comb is the graphic representation of the spectrum of a mode locked laser. An octave spanning comb can be used for mapping radio frequencies into the optical frequency range or it can be used to steer a piezoelectric mirror within a carrier envelope phase correcting feedback loop...
s due to the narrow linewidth of each tooth. Non-zero visibility is present only for short intervals of pulses repeated after cavity length distances up to this long coherence length.