Square-wave retarder for polarization computer-generated holography.

An etched calcite square-wave retarder is designed, fabricated, and demonstrated as an illuminator for an interlaced polarization computer-generated hologram (PCGH). The calcite square-wave retarder enables alternating columns of orthogonal linear polarizations to illuminate the interlaced PCGH. Together, these components produce a speckled, tangentially polarized PCGH diffraction pattern with a measured ratio of polarization of 84% and a degree of linear polarization of 0.81. An experimental alignment tolerance analysis is also reported.