Figure 1: Experimental set-up stress induced birefringence spectroscopy

Spectroscopy is a principal method for detecting and analyzing chemical compounds. The main methods of spectroscopy are well understood and widely used in many lines of natural sciences. Biggest disadvantages of current techniques are the stringent mechanical requirements and the high cost of optical components.

The proposed work presents an approach on reducing the requirements of common spectroscopy methods. In this context methods of stress induced birefringence are examined. The first part focuses on the origin of the refractive index and birefringent behaviour of materials. Furthermore, a strong similarity between photoelasticity and the signal of a Michelson interferometer is ascertained. The proposed experiments show how due to effects of stress induced birefringence the Michelson interferometer in regard to Fourier transform spectroscopy can be replaced.

Keywords: spectroscopy, birefringence, Fourier transform spectroscopy, Michelson interferometer

February 3^rd, 2017