Design parameters of thin-film cubic-type polarizers for high power lasers

Cemented thin-film cubic-type polarizers with a high extinction ratio are known to have low laser damage threshold due to the cement. A higher damage threshold is achieved using airspaced thin-film cubic-type polarizers. The desired polarization properties are achieved using a symmetric combination of high- and lowindex materials. The p-polarization transmission is enhanced using the Herpin equivalent-layers technique to reduce the reflection losses between the thin-film stack and the adjacent media, air and glass. Experimental results are presented which are in good agreement with the theoretical design.