Experimental validation of the partial coherence model in spectroscopic ellipsometry and Mueller matrix polarimetry

In this contribution, a recently advanced analytical approach for addressing partial coherence in spectroscopic polarimetric measurements is experimentally validated. The approach is based on the fundamental representation of the measurement process as the convolution of the polarimetric response of the sample and the instrumental function of the measurement system. Experimentally, the optical responses of two optically thick transparent layers were acquired by using spectroscopic Mueller matrix polarimetry at various angles of incidence over two spectral ranges (visible and infrared). The layers are considered isotropic and the loss of coherence is assumed to originate from the finite spectral resolution of the instrument. In parallel with the analytical approximation, the standard numerical approach implemented in commercial software was likewise used to reproduce the polarimetric responses. Excellent agreement between the analytical approximation, the commercial software one and the polarimetric measurements was found. The experimental validation of the analytical approximation represents a time-saving alternative to the numerical approaches used in commercial software and is of potential interest to real-time process monitoring by using spectroscopic ellipsometry or polarimetry.