Two-modulator generalized ellipsometry: experiment and calibration

A two-modulator generalized ellipsometer is described that is capable of measuring all 16 elements of a sample Mueller matrix with four measurements made at different azimuthal orientations of the polarization state generator and polarization state detector. If the sample can be described with a Mueller-Jones matrix, only a single measurement is needed. Only two calibration steps are needed to determine the fundamental operating parameters of the instrument. A reflection measurement from silicon is presented as an example, which illustrates that the elements of the Mueller-Jones matrix can be measured to an accuracy of ~0.1-0.2%.