Terahertz continuous wave system using phase shift interferometry for measuring the thickness of sub-100-μm-thick samples without frequency sweep.

A terahertz continuous wave system is demonstrated for thickness measurement using Gouy phase shift interferometry without frequency sweep. One arm of the interferometer utilizes a collimated wave as a reference, and the other arm applies a focused beam for sample investigation. When the optical path difference (OPD) of the arms is zero, a destructive interference pattern is produced. Interference signal intensity changes induced by the OPD changes can be easily predicted by calculations. By minimizing the difference between the measured and the calculated signal against the OPD, the thicknesses of sub-100-μm-thick samples are determined at 625 GHz.