Spatial versus temporal phase shifting in electronic speckle-pattern interferometry: Noise comparison in phase maps

Temporal and spatial phase shifting in electronic speckle-pattern interferometry are compared quantitatively with respect to the quality of the resultant deformation phase maps. On the basis of an analysis of the noise in sawtooth fringes a figure of merit is defined and measured for various in-plane and out-of-plane sensitive electronic speckle-pattern interferometry configurations. Varying quantities like the object-illuminating intensity, the beam ratio, the speckle size and shape, and the fringe density allows characteristic behaviors of both phase-shifting methods to be explored. © 2000 Optical Society of America.