Volume 16, Number 4, 483-488, DOI: 10.1007/s10043-009-0094-4

Two-dimensional birefringence measurement system with a polarization modulator and a rotating analyzer

Kenzo Yamanaka, Shinji Kimura and Masato Noguchi

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Abstract

The measuring system of two-dimensional birefringence distribution with a polarization modulator and a rotating analyzer using a rotating analyzer method is presented. The system simply consists of a laser diode, two polarizers, two quarter wave plates and a CCD camera. Thanks to an imaging system, the mechanism to scan a sample is unnecessary and two-dimensional measurement is possible and easy. The birefringence of retardation and orientation of the optic axis can be determined by the azimuth angle of an elliptically polarized light passing through a sample. The azimuth angle is obtained by applying the phase shifting algorithm to measure the polarization properties; by improving the calculation algorithm, wide range measurement is accomplished. The measurement procedure and a number of results are described.

Keywords  birefringence - measurement system - optic axis - retardation

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