Possible to make speckles without a Laser?

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SUMMARY

Creating speckles on a surface using a light source other than a laser is feasible. The discussion highlights that speckles result from coherent light interacting with a diffuse reflecting surface. While LEDs typically emit incoherent light, it is possible to achieve speckle patterns by using spectral filtering techniques, as demonstrated with sunlight. The Michelson Interferometer can also be utilized to observe interference patterns, which may resemble speckles.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of spatial coherence and its role in speckle formation
  • Familiarity with Michelson Interferometer principles
  • Knowledge of spectral filtering techniques
  • Basic concepts of light sources, particularly LED characteristics
NEXT STEPS
  • Research methods for achieving coherence in LED light sources
  • Explore the use of spectral filters to enhance speckle contrast
  • Study the principles and applications of the Michelson Interferometer
  • Investigate practical experiments for generating and analyzing speckles
USEFUL FOR

This discussion is beneficial for physicists, optical engineers, and researchers interested in experimental optics and speckle pattern analysis.

darthw
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Hello,
it is possibile to make speckles on a surface with a LED or something else? With a Michelson Interferometer you can get interferences with an LED -> are this already speckles?

regards,
Hans
 
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what do you mean by "speckles" ? Do you mean just colors on the surface or do you mean pits in the surface ?
 
Hello,
I mean the second one, this pits in the surface
 
You get speckle when coherent light hits a diffuse reflecting surface. Can you think of a way to get coherent light from an LED?
 
right now, no...I don´t know how to realize this :frown:
 
darthw said:
Hello,
it is possibile to make speckles on a surface with a LED or something else? With a Michelson Interferometer you can get interferences with an LED -> are this already speckles?

regards,
Hans

Sure- since speckle is a measure of spatial coherence, you can create speckles with any source. You can image speckle generated by sunlight: the speckles are about 0.06 mm in diameter and you need to spectrally filter the light to get good contrast.

https://www.osapublishing.org/ol/abstract.cfm?uri=ol-37-17-3516
 
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Hello,

that sounds great. I´m trying to build up this experiment.
thx
 

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