Polarization Characteristics of Non-polarizing Beam Splitter under Forward and Reverse Incidence Conditions

TONG Yanan; LV Ningrui; LI Jingyi; CHEN Xingda; GONG Ping; MA Chenhao; LUO Jing

doi:10.3788/gzxb20265503.0326001

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Polarization Characteristics of Non-polarizing Beam Splitter under Forward and Reverse Incidence Conditions

Physical Optics | 更新时间：2026-04-21

- Polarization Characteristics of Non-polarizing Beam Splitter under Forward and Reverse Incidence Conditions
- Acta Photonica Sinica Vol. 55, Issue 3, Pages: 217-229(2026)
- 作者机构：
  
  1.长春理工大学光电工程学院，长春 130022
  2.中国科学院长春光学精密机械与物理研究所，长春 130022
- 作者简介：
- 基金信息：
  
  Jilin Provincial Natural Science Foundation(20260101044JJ);National Key Research and Development Program of China(2021YFC2802100);Science and Technology Development Plan Project of Jilin Province of China(20240404052ZP);Strategy Priority Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences(XDB1050000);National Natural Science Foundation of China(12473085;12003033);Youth Innovation Promotion Association of the Chinese Academy of Sciences(2023225);Zhiyuan Laboratory(ZYL2024016)
- DOI：10.3788/gzxb20265503.0326001
  CLC： O436.3
- CSTR：32255.14.gzxb20265503.0326001
- Received：09 November 2025，
  
  Revised：2025-12-26，
  
  Accepted：14 January 2026，
  
  Published：25 March 2026
- 稿件说明：
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佟雅楠，吕凝睿，李静怡，等. 正向与反向入射条件下非偏振分光棱镜偏振特性研究［J］.光子学报，2026，55（3）：0326001

TONG Yanan， LV Ningrui， LI Jingyi， et al. Polarization Characteristics of Non-polarizing Beam Splitter under Forward and Reverse Incidence Conditions［J］. Acta Photonica Sinica， 2026， 55（3）：0326001
佟雅楠，吕凝睿，李静怡，等. 正向与反向入射条件下非偏振分光棱镜偏振特性研究［J］.光子学报，2026，55（3）：0326001 DOI： 10.3788/gzxb20265503.0326001. CSTR： 32255.14.gzxb20265503.0326001.

TONG Yanan， LV Ningrui， LI Jingyi， et al. Polarization Characteristics of Non-polarizing Beam Splitter under Forward and Reverse Incidence Conditions［J］. Acta Photonica Sinica， 2026， 55（3）：0326001 DOI： 10.3788/gzxb20265503.0326001. CSTR： 32255.14.gzxb20265503.0326001.

摘要

针对复杂光学系统中存在非偏振分光棱镜必须反向使用的情况，对其在不同入射方向下的偏振特性进行了分析和试验测试。在仿真研究中，基于Essential Macleod软件构建了非偏振分光棱镜的分光膜层结构，定量计算了正向与反向入射时各个通道的二向衰减和相位延迟。在此基础上，利用高精度穆勒矩阵椭偏仪对非偏振分光棱镜进行测量，进而得到其偏振特性参数，测量结果与仿真分析基本一致。结果表明，对于非偏振分光棱镜的透射通道，其偏振性质在光线正向入射和反向入射时基本一致。然而对于反射通道，光线正向入射和反向入射时非偏振分光棱镜的偏振特性差异显著，在整个波长范围内，二向衰减最大差值（即反向入射结果减去正向入射结果）约为0.11，平均差值约为0.03；相位延迟最大差值约为51.5°，平均差值约为28.76°。显然，非偏振分光棱镜的偏振性质与光线的入射方向密切相关。本文定量分析和实测了不同入射方向下非偏振分光棱镜的偏振特性，对于提升含非偏振分光棱镜精密光学系统、优化非偏振分光棱镜设计和使用等均具有重要意义。

Abstract

Non-polarizing beam splitter is an optical component widely used for beam splitting. It is primarily designed to divide incident light into two beams with specified reflection and transmission ratios while maintaining the original polarization state of the input light. Thanks to its low polarization discrimination， minimal stress birefringence， and strong polarization-maintaining capability， non-polarizing beam splitters are extensively employed in optical systems such as space remote sensing， projectors， and Michelson interferometers. Although an ideal non-polarizing beam splitter is designed to preserve the polarization state of the incident light， practical non-polarizing beam splitters exhibit certain non-ideal polarization characteristics due to inherent limitations in materials and coating designs. Moreover， these polarization properties are highly sensitive to both the angle and direction of the incident light. In some complex optical systems， a non-polarizing beam splitter may need to simultaneously process light incident from both forward and reverse directions， inevitably operating under reverse incidence. Therefore， a systematic study of the polarization properties of the non-polarizing beam splitter under reverse incidence is of great significance for high-precision optical measurement and polarization-sensitive systems. Currently， most research focuses on the influence of factors such as temperature and angular deviation on the polarization performance of the non-polarizing beam splitter， while studies on polarization characteristics under reverse incidence remain limited. This paper addresses scenarios in complex optical systems where the non-polarizing beam splitter must be used in reverse. We systematically analyze the polarization properties of the non-polarizing beam splitter under different incident directions from three perspectives： fundamental principles， simulation analysis， and experimental validation. The variations in polarization characteristics of both reflected and transmitted channels with respect to incident wavelength are analyzed and compared， and the mechanism underlying the influence of incident direction on the polarization properties of the non-polarizing beam splitter is revealed.

To achieve this objective， a combined theoretical， numerical， and experimental approach was adopted. Numerical simulations were performed using Essential Macleod thin-film design software to construct a realistic model of a non-polarizing beam splitter coating stack. The model enabled quantitative calculation of wavelength-dependent polarization parameters， including diattenuation and phase retardation， for both reflected and transmitted channels under forward and reverse incidence conditions. The simulations covered the visible spectral range and assumed identical angles of incidence for both illumination directions to isolate the effect of direction reversal. To validate the simulation results， high-precision experimental measurements were conducted using Mueller matrix ellipsometer. Commercial non-polarizing beam splitter samples （models CCM1-BS013/M and CCM5-BS016/M） were selected as representative specimens. The complete 4×4 Mueller matrices of the samples were measured over a wavelength range from 380 nm to 800 nm under both forward and reverse illumination. Subsequently， the Lu-Chipman decomposition method was applied to the measured Mueller matrices to extract key polarization parameters， specifically diattenuation and phase retardation， for the reflected and transmitted channels. Multiple measurements were performed to ensure repeatability and to assess sample-to-sample consistency.

The simulation results reveal a pronounced dependence of polarization characteristics on the direction of incident light， particularly for the reflected channel of the non-polarizing beam splitter. Under forward and reverse incidence， substantial discrepancies were observed in both diattenuation and phase retardation of the reflected beam. Specifically， the maximum change in phase retardation between the two incidence conditions reached approximately 53.64°， with an average variation on the order of 29.49°， while the maximum difference in diattenuation was approximately 0.321， with an average difference of about 0.027 3. These findings indicate that reversing the illumination direction significantly alters the polarization behavior of the reflected channel. In contrast， the transmitted channel exhibited negligible variation in both diattenuation and phase retardation across the same conditions. Experimental measurements corroborated these trends with strong qualitative and quantitative agreement. Mueller matrix ellipsometry data showed that， for the reflected channel， the maximum difference in diattenuation between forward and reverse incidence was approximately 0.11， with an average difference of around 0.03， while the maximum difference in phase retardation reached approximately 51.5°， with an average difference of about 28.76°. Importantly， repeated experiments on different non-polarizing beam splitter samples consistently demonstrated the same directional dependence： significant polarization variation in the reflected channel and nearly identical polarization behavior in the transmitted channel under both illumination directions.

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