ABSTRACT
The N-slit laser interferometer (NSLI) was first introduced as an alternative applicable to secure free-space optical communications in 2002. Albeit its initial propagation distance in the laboratory was only 15 cm, it was envisioned as an interferometric tool ideally suited for propagation in the vacuum, or outer space. Subsequently, NSLI experiments have also been conducted over hundreds of meters, in the field, via open atmosphere The interferometric character then propagates via the intra-interferometric distance until it reaches the interferometric plane at x. In other words, the generation, propagation, and detection of the interferometric characters take place within the NSLI, thus highlighting the conceptual and configurational simplicity of the interferometric approach. The concept of interferometric characters was introduced when the NSLI was disclosed as an alternative for secure free-space optical communications. In this approach there are an infinite number of possible slit combinations that can lead to a set of interferometric characters.
