Broadband polarizing light beam splitter based on a multilayer thinfilm coating

Abstract

A polarizing light beam splitter in a form of two Dove prisms of BK7 glass is created. А multilayer thinfilm coating made of two periodic structures is between the prisms. The number of Nb₂O₅ и SiO₂ layers in every structure and their thickness is selected in a way to ensure the reflection by them of the s-polarized and the transmission of p-polarized component of incident light in the entire specified operating spectral range of the splitter. It is achieved due to the partial overlap and complementation of the corresponding to the structures photon band-gap zones at the Brewster angle. The manufactured polarizing beam splitter at the full divergence angle of the input light beam up to 10° provided a degree of polarization of 0.99 in the operating wavelength range from 400 to 800 nm. Since the material for the manufacture of the polarizing beam splitter is optical glass, the size of the splitters of this design is limited only by the size of the working volume of the vacuum chambers for optical coatings.t beam up to 10° provided a degree of polarization of 0.99 in the operating wavelength range from 400 to 800 nm. Since the material for the manufacture of the polarizing beam splitter is optical glass,