Abstract: An apparatus for and a method of amplifying Faraday or Voigt rotation by passing light through a sample many times using multiple internal reflections and successive mirrored chambers that repeatedly send the light back through the sample. The sample is placed in a sample chamber that is adjacent to an optical amplifier chamber, and the optical amplifier chamber is adjacent to one or more additional chambers. The sample has a magnetic field applied thereto. The sample chamber receives light from a light source. The light reflects within the sample chamber and the sample to accumulate rotation of the light. The sample chamber transmits the light to the optical amplifier chamber. The optical amplifier chamber transmits the light to the additional chambers and reflects the light back to the sample where the light undergoes further rotation. Each one of the additional chambers transmits the light to the next additional chamber and reflects the light back to a previous chamber.

Abstract: An imaging spectropolarimeter for measuring the polarization and spectral content and the spatial signature of a target scene. The imaging spectropolarimeter includes an objective optic for receiving an electromagnetic signal and a modulator for modulating the electromagnetic signal The amplitude of each frequency component of the resulting modulated electromagnetic signal is a function of the particular polarization state of each frequency component of the electromagnetic signal. A linear polarizer passes a single polarization of the modulated electromagnetic signal to a tunable filter, which is tunable through a frequency spectrum. The tunable filter outputs a plurality of electromagnetic signal samples at predetermined frequency increments. A focal plane array receives each electromagnetic signal sample and outputs a spectrum signal and a processor applies Fourier transformation to the spectrum signal to obtain at least one Stokes polarization vector component for each pixel within the scene.

Abstract: A correlating polarimeter is provided for correlating a received waveform of a wideband electromagnetic signal with a predetermined waveform. The correlating polarimeter may include a first antenna for receiving an electromagnetic signal and a modulator interconnected with the first antenna for modulating the electromagnetic signal whereby a modulated electromagnetic signal results which contains a different polarization state for each frequency of the electromagnetic signal with the amplitude of each frequency component of the modulated electromagnetic signal being a function of the particular polarization state of each frequency component of the electromagnetic signal.