Intrinsic coincident full-Stokes polarimeter using stacked organic photovoltaics

Area of Science:

• Optoelectronics
• Photonics
• Materials Science

Background:

• Polarimetry is crucial for analyzing light polarization.
• Existing polarimeters face limitations in resolution, efficiency, and complexity.
• Organic photovoltaics (OPVs) offer unique light absorption properties.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate an intrinsic coincident full-Stokes polarimeter using OPVs.
• To develop a high-resolution, high-efficiency polarimeter architecture.
• To leverage the polarization-dependent absorption of OPVs for Stokes parameter measurement.

Main Methods:

• Cascading four strain-aligned polymer-based OPVs in series.
• Incorporating two wave plates to modulate the S3 Stokes parameter.
• Performing radiometric calibration to determine the measurement matrix.

Main Results:

• Achieved an average RMS error of 0.84% for reconstructed Stokes vectors.
• Demonstrated an in-line polarimeter concept with potential for high temporal and spatial resolution.
• Theoretically showed a minimum condition number of 2.4 for the four-cell OPV design.

Conclusions:

• Strain-aligned polymer-based OPVs can function as an intrinsic polarimeter.
• The proposed in-line OPV polarimeter offers advantages over traditional architectures.
• This technology has potential for advanced polarization analysis applications.