Phenomenological approach to the analysis of the polarization effects in fiber optic interferometers

Abstract

Using the scattering matrices and the graph theory, three basic structures of all-fiber interferometers, Mach-Zehnder, Michelson, and Sagnac have been analyzed. The influences that, the couplers with losses and constant coupling polarization dependent, and the birefringent of the optical fibers, both used for making these optical systems, introduce in the performances of the three interferometers, are studied and compared.