Wide-band single-shot measurement of refractive indices and birefringence of transparent materials

A new approach to measure the refractive index of a given material, in its whole transparency window and within a single-shot, is proposed. This method, which requires the use of only few and common optical elements, is based on the analysis of the transmission function of a single etalon fabricated with the material under test, and can be used also to directly evaluate the sample birefringence with high accuracy. Method's effectiveness is verified on both isotropic and birefringent samples with known optical properties in the 0.7–1.65 μm wavelength range. Using the proposed method, the refractive index can be estimated with accuracy of the order of 10−4.

► A simple technique for refractive-index and birefringence measurements is proposed.
► Proposed technique allows single-shot measurements from UV to NIR wavelengths.
► The experimental setup and its critical parameters are carefully discussed.
► Method effectiveness is demonstrated on both isotropic and anisotropic materials.