Parallel-slab division-of-amplitude photopolarimeter.

A division-of-amplitude photopolarimeter (DOAP) is described that uses a dielectric parallel-slab (PS) beam splitter that is coated with a high-reflectance metal on one side at oblique incidence. The instrument matrix of the PS DOAP is nonsingular, hence all four Stokes parameters can be measured simultaneously over a broad (UV-visible-IR) spectral range. The parallel, evenly spaced, ref lected beams simplify interfacing of the PS DOAP with linear photodetector arrays for both single-wavelength and spectroscopic polarimetry. The PS DOAP has several degrees of freedom that can be controlled for optimum performance.