Terahertz wave polarization analyzer using birefringent materials.

We present a terahertz wave polarization analysis method to extract the polarization rotation angle with respect to the horizontal direction. A quartz crystal is used as the polarization analyzer with the optical axis of the crystal fixed at 45 degrees orientation. The polarization angle of the terahertz waves generated from two-color laser-induced gas plasma is extracted by measuring the transmitted ordinary and extraordinary beams. This work demonstrates that low-absorbance birefringent materials are good candidates for terahertz polarization analysis.