Simultaneous measurement of phase transmission and linear or circular dichroism of an object under test.

This publication presents a novel interferometric method for the simultaneous spatially resolved analysis of an object under test regarding the phase transmission function and the magnitude and orientation of dichroism. Analogous to the classical phase-shifting interferometry, the measurement strategy is based on the variation of phase and polarization in an interferometer. This procedure allows one to analyze simultaneously and spatially resolved the dichroic properties of the object and its impact on the phase of the incoming light in one measurement cycle. The theoretical description of the investigated methods and their experimental implementation are presented.