Abstract

A new, to our knowledge, analytical method is presented to characterize the performance of modified-Wollaston-prism-based compact, static Fourier-transform spectrometers. With the aid of an exact ray-tracing method for birefringent media, the interference of the two wave fronts produced by the beam splitter is computed at an arbitrarily positioned detector array. It is shown that a compact, static Fourier-transform spectrometer employing a single modified Wollaston prism can be designed such that the fringes are perpendicular to the incident beam. The effects of aperture size, coherence of the source, and incidence angle on the resulting interferogram are quantified.

© 2000 Optical Society of America

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