Performance measurement of broadband, wide-angle polarizing beam splitter

Polarizing beam splitter (PBS) is a critical optical component in projection display system because PBS performance greatly influences the contrast and brightness of the system. PBS performance is usually measured by spectrophotometer after coating and cementing, but the measured result cannot represent the actual performance in practice because people usually change the incident angle in one plane (horizontal plane) and do not consider the other plane (vertical plane). Geometrical polarization rotation occurring at reduced F-number influences the measuring precision of s-polarization transmittance (Ts) and p-polarization reflectance (Rp). A more accurate and practical way to measure the performance of broadband, wide-angle PBS is presented in this paper.