3D Metrology Camera

We describe a concept for a metrology system that can simultaneously determine the Cartesian coordinates of thousands of targets and has no moving parts. The system is called the MSTAR^3D system and is based on two color interferometry where the conventional photodiode has been replaced with an extremely fast focal plane array. It permits the measurement of the three-dimensional position of multiple targets with a fraction of a millimeter accuracy. In this paper, the concept will be described in detail. Proof of concept measurements have been performed on a candidate camera. The measured parameters have been used in error budgets for performance validation of the concept. It will be shown that a metrology system like MSTAR^3D can determine the xyz position with sub-millimeter accuracy. This is sufficient accuracy for most large structure metrology systems and wave front corrections for large radar antennas.