Theory of optically heterodyned polarization (vectorial) interferometry onthe basis of Fedorov's covariant approach

We present consistent theoretical studies of optically heterodyned polariza tion interferometry (OHPI) with noncollinear arbitrary polarized interactin g beams in the framework of the cubic nonlinear optical susceptiblity forma lism. Our theoretical treatment is based on the covariant tensorial approac h introduced by F I Fedorov. We were able to derive the analytical expressi ons for the detected OHPI signal. Different methods for measuring the nonli near susceptibility are also suggested.