A laser-based 2-dimesional angular deflection measurement system for tilting microplates

A laser-based system that is capable of measuring the angular deflection of the microplate in two-dimension is developed. The system consists of a HeNe laser, lenses, beamsplitters, objective lens, CCD camera and position sensitive photodiode. The operation of the system is based on the measurement of the displacement of a HeNe laser beam reflecting off the surface of the microplate using position sensitive photodiode. The angular resolution is estimated at 0.2 degrees and the response time of the system is as short as 4 mus. This system can measure the static and dynamic angular response and resonance frequency of microplates, such as spatial light modulators and micromirrors, in two orthogonal directions. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.