Abstract

An intracavity polarimeter is described that is capable of measuring both weak birefringence and dichroism simultaneously. It uses, for the first time to our knowledge, polarization flips in a quasi-isotropic He–Ne laser. The laser operates at 3.39 μm. Calibration of the polarimeter is carried out by using the anisotropic properties of a tilted plate. As an illustration of the sensitivity, the diffractive anisotropy of an intracavity slit is measured.

© 1994 Optical Society of America

Intracavity polarimeter for measuring small optical anisotropies

Steven C. Read, Ming Lai, T. Cave, Stephen W. Morris, D. Shelton, A. Guest, and A. D. May
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 5(9) 1832-1837 (1988)

Polarization modes in a quasi-isotropic laser: a general anisotropy model with applications

P. Paddon, E. Sjerve, A. D. May, M. Bourouis, and G. Stéphan
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 9(4) 574-589 (1992)

Stability of polarized modes in a quasi-isotropic laser: experimental confirmation

W. Xiong, P. Glanznig, P. Paddon, A. D. May, M. Bourouis, S. Laniepce, and G. Stéphan
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 8(6) 1236-1243 (1991)

Dichroism and birefringence in aperiodic coupled cavities and their influence on the polarization states of quasi-isotropic lasers

K. Ait-Ameur, G. Stéphan, E. Sjerve, and A. D. May
Appl. Opt. 33(34) 7895-7900 (1994)

High-sensitivity two-dimensional thermal- and mechanical-stress-induced birefringence measurements in a Nd:YAG rod

Masato Ohmi, Masanori Akatsuka, Koji Ishikawa, Kenta Naito, Yoshiyuki Yonezawa, Yoshio Nishida, Masanobu Yamanaka, Yasukazu Izawa, and Sadao Nakai
Appl. Opt. 33(27) 6368-6372 (1994)