Patent ID: 9618369
Date: 2017-04-11
CPC Classifications: G01D,G01J,G01N,G03H

Claim:
1. A measurement system comprising: an electromagnetic radiation diffraction pattern generator for generating a diffraction pattern including intensity maxima and intensity minima, wherein the diffraction pattern generator includes an arrangement of light-transmitting apertures for the transmission and diffraction of light to generate the diffraction pattern; and an electromagnetic radiation detector, operable to detect at least a part of the diffraction pattern produced by said generator, the detector having an array of detection elements arranged to detect a location of each of a plurality of the intensity maxima and/or intensity minima of the diffraction pattern substantially simultaneously; wherein the electromagnetic radiation diffraction pattern generator comprises a laser attached to a pinhole array; wherein the arrangement of light-transmitting apertures comprises five pinholes arranged on the vertices of a regular pentagon or a ring of nineteen pinholes; wherein the detected locations of the plurality of the intensity maxima and/or intensity minima are substantially translationally aperiodic; wherein the diffraction pattern is a two dimensional diffraction pattern; wherein the detection elements are arranged in a two dimensional array at the detector; wherein the maxima of the diffraction pattern are spaced apart at a pitch equal to at least twice the pitch of the detection elements; wherein the detector intercepts at least 10 maxima and/or minima in a single detection event; wherein the detector has at least 10,000 pixels; and wherein the system is capable of determining a physical property of the system, or a change in a physical property of the system, based on the detected locations of the plurality of the intensity maxima and/or intensity minima.