Theory and optimization of the parameters of a polarization method for the measurement of weak absorption in optical materials

A theoretical analysis is made of a polarization calorimetric method for the determination of weak absorption in optical materials. Several variants of the method are considered and the optimal conditions for its application are identified. The sensitivity of the method is ~1 dB/km for a sample 1 cm thick. It is shown that the method can be used to determine absorption in optically anisotropic materials.