Calculation of Systematic Errors in Determining Light‐Scattering Matrix Elements

We consider systematic errors in determining light‐scattering matrix elements by a device in which the polarization properties of probing radiation change depending on different angular positionings of the principal directions of the first phase plate, and we perform polarization analysis of scattered radiation using the Fourier expansion of the signal from a photodetector that records the intensity of radiation passed through the rotating second phase plate and a stationary analyzer. Formulas estimating the errors arising in separate deviation of the axes of the anisotropic optical elements in the illuminating and light‐receiving channels of the measuring device were derived. Using the method of mathematical simulation, we consider the combined influence of various inaccuracies in positioning anisotropic elements.