Polarization fidelity in an optical interferometer

David F. Buscher; Fabien Baron; Christopher A. Haniff

doi:10.1117/12.789123

28 July 2008 Polarization fidelity in an optical interferometer

David F. Buscher, Fabien Baron, Christopher A. Haniff

Proceedings Volume 7013, Optical and Infrared Interferometry; 70130E (2008) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.789123
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2008, Marseille, France

Abstract

The optical trains of interferometers invariably contain oblique reflections that alter the polarization state of the light from the source. Even for arrays with symmetric optical paths, large systematic visibility errors can be introduced when observing sources with intrinsic polarization. We have identified the key metric for polarization fidelity in an optical interferometer - the diattenuation of the optical train - and we evaluate the visibility penalties incurred by an interferometer that is not optimized for polarimetric purity for a number of different types of polarized source.

Citation Download Citation

David F. Buscher, Fabien Baron, and Christopher A. Haniff "Polarization fidelity in an optical interferometer", Proc. SPIE 7013, Optical and Infrared Interferometry, 70130E (28 July 2008); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.789123

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