Vanishing tilt-to-length coupling for a singular case in two-beam laser interferometers with Gaussian beams

Appl Opt. 2015 Feb 10;54(5):1010-4. doi: 10.1364/AO.54.001010.

Abstract

The omnipresent tilt-to-length coupling in two-beam laser interferometers, frequently a nuisance in precision measurements, vanishes for the singular case of two beams with identical parameters and complete detection of both beams without clipping. This effect has been observed numerically and is explained in this manuscript by the cancellation of two very different effects of equal magnitude and opposite sign.