Determination of the instrument function of a grating spectrometer by using white-light interferometry

We determined the instrument function or the response function of a grating spectrometer with finite slit widths in conditions of partial coherent illumination, by using a spectral-interference technique with white light. A Michelson interferometer of variable path delay is used to produce the spectral-interference fringes of required spacing. By deconvolution of the spectral visibility data for various exit and entrance slit widths, we have determined the exact form and frequency width of the instrument function for the spectrometer as well as the working region of the spectrometer for the least distorted output spectrum. (C) 1997 Optical Society of America.