Design considerations for a liquid crystal tuned Lyot filter for laser bathymetry

The design of a six-stage liquid crystal tuned Lyot filter for operation at a wavelength of 532 nm is described. Design options including material type and factors affecting performance such as material quality are discussed. The proposed narrow-passband filter will have a bandwidth of less than 0.1 nm. To achieve the performance required of the filter, high transmittance polarizers have been developed.