Reduction of polarimetric data using Mueller calculus applied to Nasmyth instruments

TL;DR

This paper introduces a Mueller calculus-based calibration method for linear polarimetric observations, enabling accurate, efficient polarimetry for complex telescope/instrument setups like Nasmyth instruments.

Contribution

It presents a novel calibration approach that can be integrated into data pipelines and handles non-ideal instrument architectures effectively.

Findings

Calibration can be implemented in data reduction pipelines.

Accurate polarimetry achievable for Nasmyth instruments.

Method reduces calibration time significantly.

Abstract

We present a method based on Mueller calculus to calibrate linear polarimetric observations. The key advantages of the proposed way of calibration are: (1) that it can be implemented in a data reduction pipeline, (2) that it is possible to do accurate polarimetry also for telescopes/instruments with polarimetric non-friendly architecture (e.g. Nasmyth instruments) and (3) that the proposed strategy is much less time consuming than standard calibration procedures. The telescope/instrument will polarimetrically be described by a train of Mueller matrices. The components of these matrices are dependent on wavelength, incident angle of the incoming light and surface properties.