Imaging polarimetry
I am currently designing and building a dual beam imaging polarimeter using a Wollaston prism. Early tests have gone well and I anticipate a limiting magnitude for the instrument of ~mag14. This will be used to study the phase dependence of asteroid polarization. At the moment I need to re-machine the prism housing due to misalignment of the original optics causing systematic errors. The original problem was caused by opical components not being the dimensions as specified on their datasheets and thus causing havoc at the assembly stage. This project will proceed when I get around to machining new parts!
A basic schematic of the optics may be seen below.
