Robust decorrelation-based iterative algorithm for accurate phase extraction from disturbed fringe patterns.

We propose an accurate and robust phase extraction method for phase-shifting interferometry to reduce the phase ripple error caused by illumination, contrast, phase-shift spatiotemporal variation, and intensity harmonics. In this method, a general physical model of interference fringes is constructed, and the parameters are decoupled using a Taylor expansion linearization approximation. In the iterative process, the estimated illumination and contrast spatial distributions are decorrelated from the phase, thus reducing damage to the algorithm's robustness caused by a large number of linear model approximations. To the best of our knowledge, no method has been able to extract the phase distribution robustly and with high accuracy while considering all of these error sources simultaneously without imposing constraints inconsistent with the practical conditions.

Particle-Based Porous Materials for the Rapid and Spontaneous Diffusion of Liquid Metals.

Gallium-based room-temperature liquid metals have enormous potential for realizing various applications in electronic devices, heat flow management, and soft actuators. Filling narrow spaces with a liquid metal is of great importance in rapid prototyping and circuit printing. However, it is relatively difficult to stretch or spread liquid metals into desired patterns because of their large surface tension. Here, we propose a method to fabricate a particle-based porous material which can enable the rapid and spontaneous diffusion of liquid metals within the material under a capillary force. Remarkably, such a method can allow liquid metal to diffuse along complex structures and even overcome the effect of gravity despite their large densities. We further demonstrate that the developed method can be utilized for prototyping complex three-dimensional (3D) structures via direct casting and connecting individual parts or by 3D printing. As such, we believe that the presented technique holds great promise for the development of additive manufacturing, rapid prototyping, and soft electronics using liquid metals.