Absorbing beam splitter in a Michelson interferometer.
The equality of the reflected and the transmitted irradiances by a beam splitter that consists of a thin absorbing coating (typically a metallic film) on a transparent plate is considered. The absorption and the phase difference between the reflected and transmitted fields are also studied. The lack of reversibility of this beam splitter introduces an asymmetry that is discussed for a Michelson interferometer.
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JJ
Monzón
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LL
Sánchez-Soto