PEM200 User Manual
51
Calibration Using an Oscilloscope
The most straightforward procedure, and the one used at Hinds Instruments for the
factory calibration of modulators, utilizes a monochromatic light source (e.g. HeNe
laser), a solid state detector (e.g. silicon photodiode), and an oscilloscope. A block
diagram for the setup is given in figure A.2.
Figure A.2 Oscilloscope Calibration Method
The detector and its associated electronics (including the oscilloscope) should have a
frequency bandwidth several times the frequency of the modulator. Calibration can be
done in many cases when this condition is not met, but the waveforms will be distorted
and the proper half-wave condition will be more difficult to identify.
Referring to equation 3, interesting and distinctive waveforms on the oscilloscope occur
whenever A
0
is an integral multiple of
2
λ
or
π
radians. For half-wave peak
retardation (
2
λ
or
π
radians), the intensity waveform is shown in figure A.3.
Monochromatic
Light Source
+45°
Polarizer
Modulator
0°
Polarizer
Controller
Oscilloscope
Reference
-45°
Detector