Polarization Michelson interferometer as a global polarization state generator and for measurement of the coherence and spectral properties of quasimonochromatic light

Abstract

For a quasimonochromatic light source with a known spectrum, the polarization Michelson interferometer (POLMINT) can be used as a global polarization state generator that produces totally or partially polarized light at its output in states of known degree of polarization that correspond to points on and within the Poincaré sphere. Conversely, the spectral and coherence properties of a quasimonochromatic source can be determined from the Stokes parameters of light at the output of the POLMINT measured by a complete polarization state detector as functions of a mirror displacement. Applications of the POLMINT as an ellipsometer are also discussed.