Patent ID: 7046374

Claim:
An interferometer, comprising: a first glass plate optically coupled to a second glass plate, forming an optical interferometric cavity therebetween; a spacer coupled on a first end to the first glass plate and on a second end to the second glass plate such that the optical interferometric cavity maintains a substantially constant width; a first reflective coating coupled to the first glass plate within the optical interferometric cavity, wherein the first reflective coating is partially reflective; a second reflective coating coupled to the second glass plate within the optical interferometric cavity, wherein the second reflective coating is at least partially reflective; a tuning plate residing within the interferometric cavity and optically coupled to the first and second reflective coatings, wherein the tuning plate comprises a photosensitive material, wherein a refractive index of the photosensitive material may be modified by exposure to light; a first birefringent wave late residing within the optical interferometric cavity and optically coupled to the tuning plate; and a second birefringent wave plate residing outside the optical interferometric cavity and optically coupled to the first glass plate.