EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF THE EFFECT OF AN ACHROMATIC HALF-WAVE PLATE ON THE POLARIZATION STATE VECTOR OF CORRELATED TWO-PHOTON RADIATION FROM METASTABLE ATOMIC DEUTERIUM

We report the results of an experiment which, for the first time, demonstrates the action of an achromatic half-wave plate on the polarization state of the two-photon radiation emitted by atomic deuterium in the metastable 2S1/2 state. The results agree with the quantum mechanical predictions and confirm the hypothesis of Breit and Teller that the fine and hyperfine interaction plays no role in the emission process.