Birefringence imaging with imperfect benches: application to large-scale birefringence measurements

摘要

We describe a birefringence measurement bench that allows fast two-dimensional measurements of low-birefringence fields in large transparent samples. We present calculations that show that, even when a birefringence bench exhibits defects (nonideal components, misalignments, etc.), measurements can be performed under realistic conditions without any a priori knowledge of the origin of the bench defects. This allows the measurement of birefringence fields on large-scale samples by use of an array of detectors instead of a single detector element, with a sensitivity of 3×10~(-4) rad for 2-s data integration.