Electrooptic coefficient measurements by Mach Zehnder interferometric method: Application of Abelès matrix formalism for thin film polymeric sample description

Abstract

In Mach–Zehnder interferometric (MZI) method for determination of thin organic film electrooptic (EO) coefficients r13 and r33 critical effects, like multiple internal reflections and sample thickness modulation due to electrostriction and piezoelectricity are usually overlooked. Ignoring these effects may lead to inaccurate calculation of EO coefficients from experimental data by the simplified equations. To describe the influence of the above mentioned effects on the output of a MZI containing a thin film polymer sample we have used the Abelès matrix formalism.