A Four-Channel Polarimeter to Measure Nanosecond Laser Pulses,

摘要

A four-channel polarimeter can be used to determine the polarization characteristics of optical components,systems,and other related phenomena. While the primary purpose of the four-channel configuration is to measure the four Stokes polarization parameters in a nanosecond duration,there is an additional benefit to the design. This is shown by illuminating an optical system with right circularly polarized light or linearly +45deg polarized light. Each of the measured Stokes parameters is then equal to one of the unknown A, B, C, D matrix elements. In many situations of military interest this property could be invaluable.