Common-path probes provide considerable advantages for fiber-based OCT due to intrinsic length and phase matching. However, the polarization state of the reference light is usually arbitrary and variable due to stress-induced birefringence in single-mode fibers, which complicates implementing polarization-sensitive OCT. Here, we present depth-resolved retardation measurements with a single-mode fiber-based common-path probe by utilizing the constrained polarization evolution and the mirror state phenomenon for reconstruction of the round-trip measurements in the case of arbitrary reference states. Thus, a compact and flexible polarization-sensitive OCT implementation is demonstrated.

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Jonas Golde, Julia Walther, Jiawen Li, Robert A. McLaughlin, and Edmund Koch, "Polarization-sensitive OCT using a single-mode fiber-based common-path probe," Proc. SPIE PC11948, Optical Coherence Tomography and Coherence Domain Optical Methods in Biomedicine XXVI, PC119481B (Presented at SPIE BiOS: January 26, 2022; Published: 7 March 2022); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2607184.6295507503001.