Magnetic field measuring apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-8957677-B2
Application number	US-91423210-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 28, 2010
Priority date	Oct 29, 2009
Publication date	Feb 17, 2015
Grant date	Feb 17, 2015

Abstract

A beam that passes through a plurality of gas cells a number of times is led to a deflection meter from a light ejecting section, detection of a deflected surface angle is performed and a strength of a magnetic field is measured by a structure in which the plurality of the gas cells is arranged along a light beam between two reflection units or light concentrating units that have a light beam incidence section and a light beam ejecting section and are opposite to each other, and a laser beam that is incident from the light beam incidence section passes through the plurality of the gas cells and then is multiply reflected by both reflection units.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A magnetic field measuring apparatus comprising:
a probe light irradiating unit that irradiates a probe light beam in a first direction, the probe light beam having a straight polarization;
a pump light irradiating unit that irradiates first and second pump light beams in a second direction that is different from the first direction, the first and second pump light beams having first and second circular polarizations, respectively;
first and second magnetic mediums through which the probe light beam passes, the first and second magnetic mediums being magnetized with respect to a polarization direction of the first and second circular polarizations,
a light path control unit that controls a light path of the probe light beam so that the number of passage times of the probe light beam through the first and second magnetic mediums are the same, and
a detection unit that receives the probe light beam and that detects a difference between first and second rotation amounts of first and second polarized light surfaces of the probe light beam, wherein
the first magnetic medium rotates the first polarized light surface of the probe light beam according to first strength of a first component in a perpendicular direction perpendicular to the first direction of an externally applied magnetic field that is applied to the first magnetic medium by Faraday effect,
the second magnetic medium rotates the second polarized light surface of the probe light beam according to second strength of the first component in the perpendicular direction of the externally applied magnetic field that is applied to the second magnetic medium by Faraday effect,
the probe light irradiating unit, the detection unit, and the first and second magnetic mediums are located along the first direction, and the probe light irradiating unit and the detection unit are located at the same side next to one of the first and second magnetic mediums,
the light path control unit includes first and second reflection mirrors between which the first and second magnetic mediums are located, the reflection mirrors reflect the probe light beam so that the probe light beam passes through the first and second magnetic mediums the same number of times, the first reflection mirror is located directly adjacent to the probe light irradiating unit, the detection unit and the one of the first and second magnetic mediums, and the second reflection mirror is located directly adjacent to the other of the first and second magnetic mediums, and
the detection unit detects the difference between the first and second rotation amounts of the first and second polarized light surfaces of the probe light beam in consideration of a decreasing amount of strength of the probe light beam.

2. The magnetic field measuring apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the light path control unit has corner cubes, and
the corner cubes reflect the probe light beam so that the probe light beam passes through the first and second magnetic mediums the same number of times.

3. The magnetic field measuring apparatus according to claim 1 , further including:
a calculation unit that calculates a difference between the first strength and the second strength.

Assignees

• Nagasaka Kimio
• Seiko Epson Corp

Inventors

• Nagasaka Kimio

Classifications

• G01R33/0322 Primary

  using the Faraday or Voigt effect · CPC title

• G01R33/26

  using optical pumping · CPC title

• G01R33/24

  for measuring direction or magnitude of magnetic fields or magnetic flux · CPC title

• G01R33/0327

  with application of magnetostriction · CPC title

• G01R33/032 Primary

  using magneto-optic devices, e.g. Faraday {or Cotton-Mouton effect} · CPC title