System and method for calibrating optical measurement systems that utilize polarization diversity

A method of calibrating an optical measurement system utilizing polarization diversity, comprising:

• causing a first light polarization component and a second light polarization component to propagate in a waveplate having a rotation axis while rotating the waveplate about the rotation axis;
• causing an equal common phase shift in the first and second light polarization components while maintaining a differential phase shift in the first and second light polarization components;
• sensing a relative phase between the first and second light polarization components;
• and
• determining at least one calibration parameter based on the relative phase.

A waveplate for use in an optical measurement system utilizing polarization diversity, the waveplate comprising:

• a first plate comprising a first material and configured to receive an incident light beam and propagate therein a first light polarization component and a second light polarization component;
• and
• a second plate comprising a second material coupled to the first material and configured to receive the first and second polarization light components from the first plate,
• wherein the waveplate has a rotation axis around which the waveplate is configured to be rotated with a minimum optical path difference between the first and second polarization components through the first and second plates.

An optical measurement system utilizing polarization diversity, comprising:

• a light source configured to transmit an incident light beam;
• a waveplate having a rotation axis and configured to receive at least a portion of the incident light beam, the received incident light beam causing a first polarization component and a second polarization component to propagate in the waveplate;
• a rotation mechanism coupled to the waveplate and configured to rotate the waveplate about the rotation axis by a predetermined angle to cause an equal common phase shift in the first and second polarization components while maintaining a differential phase shift in the first and second polarization components;
• photodetectors disposed at an opposite side of the waveplate with respect to the light source and configured to receive a light beam emerging from the waveplate and convert the emerging light beam into electrical signals;
• a signal conversion module configured to receive the electrical signals and convert the electrical signals into a digital representation;
• a processor configured to receive the digital representation, sense a relative phase between the first and second light polarization components in the emerging light beam, and determine at least one calibration parameter based on the relative phase;
• and
• a memory in data communication with the processor and configured to store the at least one calibration parameter.