Wide band interferometry for thickness measurement.

In this work we present the concept of wide band interferometry as opposed to white-light interferometry to introduce a thickness measurement method that gains precision when the bandwidth is reduced to an adequate compromise in order to avoid the distortions arising from the material dispersion. The use of the widest possible band is a well established dogma when the highest resolution is desired in distance measurements with white-light interferometry. We will show that the dogma falls when thickness measurements must be carried out due to material dispersion. In fact the precise knowledge of the frequency dependence of the refractive index is essential for adequate thickness retrieval from the optical experiments. The device we present is also useful to obtain the group refractive index that is necessary to calculate the absolute thickness value. As an example, we show the spreading of a silicone oil on a reference surface in real time.