Editing Homodyne detection (section)

==In optics==
In optical [[interferometry]], '''homodyne''' signifies that ''the reference radiation'' (i.e. the [[local oscillator]]) ''is derived from the same source as the signal before the modulating process''. For example, in a [[laser]] scattering measurement, the laser beam is split into two parts. One is the local oscillator and the other is sent to the system to be probed. The scattered light is then mixed with the local oscillator on the detector. This arrangement has the advantage of being insensitive to fluctuations in the frequency of the laser. Usually the scattered beam will be weak, in which case the (nearly) steady component of the detector output is a good measure of the instantaneous local oscillator intensity and therefore can be used to compensate for any fluctuations in the intensity of the laser.<ref name=Renishaw>{{cite web |url=http://resources.renishaw.com/en/download/white-paper-homodyne-and-heterodyne-interferometry--5653 |title=Heterodyne and homodyne interferometry |last=Chapman |first=Mark |publisher=Renishaw plc (UK) |date=2002 |access-date=14 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170726073548/http://resources.renishaw.com/en/download/white-paper-homodyne-and-heterodyne-interferometry--5653 |archive-date=26 July 2017 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref name=Xu>{{cite thesis|last1=Xu|first1=Qing|title=Optical Homodyne Detections and Applications in Quantum Cryptography|date=2009|publisher=[[Télécom ParisTech]]|location=Paris|url=https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/pastel-00005580/file/ThesisFull_V2.pdf|access-date=14 February 2017}}</ref>{{clarify|reason=Too brief for nonexperts|date=October 2016}}.  

The generated current signal from the [[photodetector]] is often converted into a voltage using a [[transimpedance amplifier]].