Dual-modulator broadband infrared Mueller matrix ellipsometry

A broadband mid-infrared Mueller matrix ellipsometer is described based on two photoelastic modulators and a step-scan interferometer. The data are analyzed using a combination hardware-software double Fourier transformation. Obtaining spectra of the Mueller matrix elements requires that the infrared wavelength-dependent retardation amplitude of the modulators be known through calibration and subsequently incorporated into the data processing. The spectroscopic capability of the instrument is demonstrated in transmission and reflection geometries by the measured Mueller matrices of air, an anisotropic quartz crystal, and the ZnSe-water interface, each from 2500-4000 cm(-1). (C) 2012 Optical Society of America