The Mechanism of OCT

This diagram explains a part of the mechanism of OCT, specifically how the difference in the distance traveled by the two beams, the reference beam and the sample beam creates a phase shift in the coherent light waves, which translates into a distinct interference pattern, that is detected by a detector and then decoded and synthesized into a one dimensional image by a computer.

Note: this diagram simplifies and alters the organization of the interferometer for pedagogical purposes, for example: the reflection angle is not accurate, the reference beam and the sample beam are not directly parallel to each other as the diagram may imply.