Waveplate is an optics in which the polished faces contain the optical axis.All light incidents normal to the surface are composed of components polarized paralle and perpendicular to the axis.In such a device,light polarized parallel to the axis will propagate slower than light polarized perpendicular to the axis.As the light propagates through the optic,the phase shift between the two components increases with thickness.The phase shift is called te retardance.The most popu- lar retarders are quarter and half wave.
With an appropriate choice of thickness,any degree of retardance may be achieved at any wavelength for which quartz is transparent.However,the minimum thickness necessary to achieve a mechanically strong part corresponds to several full waves of retardance.
Hontec Optics can produce: Low Order Waveplate, Zero Order Waveplate, Dual Wavelength Waveplate, Achro- matic Waveplate.