any acoustic, optical, or microwave instrument that uses interference patterns or fringes to make accurate measurements of wavelength, wave velocity, distance, etc
2. astronomy
a radio or optical array consisting of two or more telescopes separated by a known distance and connected so that the radiation from a source in space undergoes interference, enabling the source to be imaged or the position of the source to be accurately determined
Derived forms
interferometric (ˌɪntəˌfɛrəˈmɛtrɪk)
adjective
interferometrically (ˌinterˌferoˈmetrically)
adverb
interferometry (ˌinterferˈometry)
noun
interferometer in American English
(ˌɪntərfɪrˈɑmətər)
noun
an instrument for measuring wavelengths of light and very small distances and thicknesses,for determining indices of refraction, and for analyzing small parts of a spectrum by means of the interference phenomena of light